Torn
by all4jesus84
Summary: Erica Evans has a 13-year-old daughter, Kaitlyn, along with her son, Tyler, and the broken family try to make things work as a mother ship mysteriously lands in their city, threatening to tear apart the family that is already tearing at the seams.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

Kaitlyn was restless.

It wasn't unusual, not for the 13-year-old daughter of an FBI agent, not for the daughter of a father who left his family in shambles, and not for the sister of a rebellious teenager, her big brother Tyler.

There was a lot to keep her awake these days.

It was morning, early. The sun was beginning to intrude through her curtains, daring her with another day. She let out a whimper of a groan and rolled over, away from the sun, wishing she could just fall back asleep. It was far too early for a Saturday morning.

Kaitlyn closed her eyes, began to feel the comforting heaviness of sleep overtake her, when she felt the first shake.

It woke her, feeling her bed shaking beneath her, if only for a second. At first, she thought she was imaginging it, an after-effect of coming out of a dazed half-sleep, but then the shaking began again, a little more this time, and Kaitlyn immediately thought it was a small earthquake, but then it stopped again.

Kaitlyn closed her eyes, wondering if maybe the whole thing was a dream. She was so in and out of sleep, most of the time, she wasn't sure where dreams began and reality ended.

But she heard her mother's bedroom door open slightly, the gentle patter of her feet walking past Kaitlyn's door toward the end of the hall. Her mother, Erica, was probably getting up for work. Kaitlyn rolled over.

She heard the knock, and then her brother's door opening.

"Tyler," Erica called, no doubt entering his room. "Did you feel that?"

Kaitlyn's eyes popped open.

Her body froze.

Tyler.

He wasn't in his room.

In fact, he wasn't even in the _house_.

"Tyler!" Erica yelled, coming out of her son's bedroom, and storming down the hall.

Kaitlyn recalled the previous night, when she was sitting at the kitchen nook with a bowl of cereal, her midnight snack, though it was nowhere near midnight.

Erica was working late, again. It wasn't any surprise, not to Tyler and Kaitlyn, who were used to their mother's demanding schedule.

Tyler had come downstairs, donning his leather jacket and a smug expression. Kaitlyn picked up on his plan instinctively. He was taking off on his bike, that stupid death-trap he insisted on buying last year, and _still_ insisted on riding, even after his accident. Sometimes, Kaitlyn wondered what was going through his thick skull.

Anyway, he snuck out last night, made Kaitlyn swear on her life and all that was good and holy that she wouldn't rat him out.

That was how it always with with Kaitlyn. Trapped in the middle between her rebellious brother, whom she loved like crazy, and her busy mother, who she looked up to with a fierce passion. It was a vicious cycle; Tyler would disobey the rules, engage in rebellious acts and swear Kaitlyn to secrecy, just in time for Erica to come along and ask Kaitlyn what was going on with her brother.

She couldn't win either way; she couldn't have both their trusts.

It _sucked_!

But now Erica was calling Tyler's name throughout the house, which meant he hadn't come home last night.

He was in such huge trouble!

Kaitlyn closed her eyes.

It didn't take long before her own bedroom door opened and in a few short strides, Erica was sitting on her daughter's bed, shaking her, thinking she was still asleep.

"Kait, wake up sweetie!" she said shortly, sounding out of breath. Kaitlyn moaned as she pretended to squint her eyes like she'd been sleeping this whole time.

"_Mom_, it's Saturday, lemme sleep in," Kaitlyn whined, rolling over, hoping her mom would leave her alone, let her try and find some sleep.

"No, Kait, this is important, come on, wake up for me, please," Erica said a little irritably, continuing to shake Kaitlyn.

Well, there was no getting out of this one. She was caught up in the web that was the animosity between mother and son once again.

Kaitlyn opened her eyes and rolled over to stare up into her mother's fierce blue eyes, eyes that held pain Kaitlyn could only begin to understand. Her mother, her best friend, her role model, hadn't taken the divorce well, and Kaitlyn knew that. Erica might be good at working hard, putting on a happy face for the kids, but Kaitlyn wasn't like all the other 13-year-old girls, who were only concerned with boys, dances and bras. Kaitlyn was a little more intuitive than most, and far more emotional. She could read her mom like a book, and Tyler too.

And the two of them weren't getting along. At _all_.

Erica's long blonde hair fell over her shoulders as she stared at Kaitlyn, worried. Kaitlyn often wondered if it hurt Erica to look at her dark-haired children, a daily reminder of their father.

Kaitlyn sighed.

"Hi mom," she said quietly, managing a small smile that wasn't returned.

"Where's Tyler?" Erica asked with a sense of urgency. Kaitlyn felt her heart in her throat. Now for the lying, the lying she hated so much, but felt so obligated to do at times.

"Isn't he in bed?" Kaitlyn asked as inquisitively as she could, yawning a little.

Erica shook her head.

"No, he's not," she said with a sigh. "Come on Kait, this is important, _where_ is your brother?"

Kaitlyn felt her defenses rising.

She sat up.

"Mom, what makes you think _I_ would know where he is anyway?" she asked, narrowing her eyebrows defiantly.

It hardly ever worked, and this time was no exception.

"Kaitlyn, you _always_ know where your brother is because he always tells _you_." Erica let out a sigh. "The two of you are close, and that makes me so happy, but right now, I want you to break whatever confidence you have with him and tell me where your brother is."

Erica stared at her daughter hard, knowing how greatly it was conflicting it was for her, but needing to know where her eldest had snuck out to, and why.

Kaitlyn sighed, feeling her body tensing up, knowing if she kept it a secret, she would probably end up either grounded, or dealing with an irritated mother for the rest of the day, but if she told her mother, Tyler would freak out on her later.

Both options weren't fun.

But the sheer worry glazing her mother's eyes made the decision easy for Kaitlyn, at least for now.

"I'm sorry mom," she replied, "I honestly don't know where he is."

"Do you know how long he's been gone?" Erica asked, sensing the truth in what her daughter was saying.

Kaitlyn bit her lip, her way of showing how much she didn't want to snitch.

Her mother's warning glance left her no choice.

"He snuck out last night." Kaitlyn swallowed. "An hour before I headed to bed. You came home later. I...I guess you thought Tyler was in bed, like me."

Erica was silent as she considered her daughter, mulled it all over in her mind, and then, with the blankest of faces, Erica got up and left.

Kaitlyn hated it, when she couldn't read her mother. Sometimes, she could just freeze her face up so good that Kaitlyn had to wonder if she felt anything at all.

But then, that was how Erica dealt with things, sometimes, by pretending she didn't feel. Kaitlyn figured she was doing it to be strong for her kids, but Kaitlyn could see right through it.

Kaitlyn was left in bed, struggling with the inner turmoil that churned inside her. She was tired of this family feud, she was tired of being in the middle. Tyler and Erica seemed to be fighting or disagreeing all the time, and since Kaitlyn was seen as a neutral party, she was always in the middle.

She heard the sounds of low beeping off in the distance; Erica was calling Tyler.

Kaitlyn threw back her covers, jumped out of bed and headed downstairs where she found Erica pacing back and forth. Kaitlyn stopped on the seventh stair, and waited, listened.

"Tyler?" Erica said into the phone. Her voice was laced with edge; panic and anger, Kaitlyn couldn't pick out which was heaviest. "Where are you?"

Kaitlyn waited while Erica listened. Erica closed her eyes, and again, Kaitlyn couldn't figure out if she was annoyed or relieved.

"A fight. You got into a fight."

Kaitlyn sighed. Ty was going to get it now.

"What do you mean you're at the hospital?" Erica asked as her voice went up an octave.

The hospital.

Kaitlyn still had the vivid memories of the hospital from when Tyler had his motorcycle accident last year. Was he okay this time too?

"You won't be fine when _I'm_ through with you, Tyler Evans!" Erica shouted into the telephone. Another empty threat. That was their mother. Sure, she meant well, but she would never actually hurt either of them, punishing them was hard enough, since she was hardly ever at home. It was fine with Kaitlyn, who never did anything wrong, was the apple of her mother's eye, but Tyler, Tyler went out of his way to piss their mother off, it seemed, especially since the divorce.

Kaitlyn sighed, dreading the fight that would ensue between mother and son whenever Tyler got home.

That was when the house started shaking.

Really hard, this time.

Kaitlyn clung to the railing, eyes wide, staring all around her as pictures fell from the wall. She distantly heard her mother yelling into the telephone, "Stay where you are, I'm coming for you."

And then Erica was up the stairs, grabbing a hold of Kaitlyn's hand, leading her up to her bedroom.

"Get dressed quickly, sweetie, we have to get your brother," Erica said with a sense of urgency, as she jogged toward her own bedroom. Kaitlyn followed her to the door, having to hold the sides of it to keep from falling over.

"Mom, what's going _on_?" Kaitlyn asked, gazing after her mother for the answers.

Erica could only offer an agitated shrug.

"I know as much as you do, Kait."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Kaitlyn dressed quickly, picking clothes right off her sorry excuse of a floor. She never cleaned her room, and her mother hardly got on her case about it. Erica Evans couldn't be hypocritical; When was the last time she'd cleaned her room?

Ever since her father left, her mother became more obsessive about her work. Sure, working as an FBI agent was destined to expect long hours, but Kaitlyn noticed the difference. There were too many calls after school, her mother calling to tell Kaitlyn she would be late again tonight.

Tyler wasn't much help. Sure, she and her brother were close, but he was hardly home. Kaitlyn suspected he didn't like being home. He and their mother were always at each other's throats about something. Tyler never used to be so rebellious. Kaitlyn knew that was because of the divorce too. Nobody gave her enough credit, being only 13, but she was smarter than they realized. She clued in to these sorts of things.

Tyler still hung out with their dad, going over on weekends for visits, fishing trips, a coffee here and there if their dad was in town. Kaitlyn, now that was a different story. She hadn't seen her father since he left. It wasn't that she wasn't allowed to. Despite the messy divorce, Erica had been really gracious about sharing the kids, and talking kindly about their father. No, it was Kaitlyn's decision; she didn't _want_ to see him. He left them on their own like he hadn't a care in the world. That wasn't the kind of man she wanted to call a father.

"Kait, let's _go_!" Erica yelled from downstairs, the distant sound of rattling keys following. Kaitlyn sighed, thankful the house-shaking had stopped, but it wasn't that earthquake that made Kaitlyn nervous. It was the one that was coming next, and it would start when her mother got her hands on Tyler. Man, he was _dead_.

Erica and Kaitlyn got into the car and took off, Kait noticing her mother was driving a little faster than usual, a fiercely determined look spread across her face. Swallowing, Kaitlyn spoke up.

"Mom, do you really think it's the safest thing to be driving right after an earthquake? What about aftershocks?" she asked. Erica didn't seem to be thinking about aftershocks. She had that look in her eye, and it cut Kaitlyn to the core. It was the look she got whenever Tyler drifted even further away. It was a fear that she was losing her son.

"Right now, Kaiti, the only thing I'm concentrating on is finding Tyler," Erica replied evenly, steadying her voice. "Worry about the safety police another day, got it?"

Her tone took on a new dimension, frustration. Kaitlyn managed a tiny nod and stared at her folded hands in her lap. She loved her mother and brother more than anything, and this animosity between them killed her, though she would never say it. The two of them had enough to deal with battling each other day in and day out. Who had time or energy to hear what Kaitlyn thought about it?

Erica seemed to pick up on her daughter's silence, that it must mean something. She stole a glance over and saw her youngest staring at her hands methodically. Sighing, Erica reached over and put her hand on Kaitlyn's.

"I'm sorry, Kaiti-B," Erica said, using her nickname for Kaitlyn. "I'm just a little frustrated about Tyler right now."

Kaitlyn exhaled.

"Yeah, you always are."

"Hey come on, Kait." Erica glanced sideways. "You know this has nothing to do with you."

Kaitlyn shook her head.

"Yes it does."

Before Erica could respond, they were stopped by a roadblock. Not just one, but several. Their conversation had distracted them so much, neither of them realized there were people crowding around the roadblocks like a frenzied mob. Everyone was shouting and there was no detour. Kaitlyn stared. Was all this because of the earthquake? That was strange.

Erica let out a deep breath. Everyone outside was in a panic, and Kaitlyn could see the look in Erica's eyes. She would never find Tyler with all this distraction.

"Stay in the car." Erica ordered as she unbuckled and stepped out, shutting the door behind her.

Kaitlyn counted to three.

_Yeah right._

She got out of the car and raced up to where her mother was flashing her FBI badge in one of the cop's face, telling him who she was, and that she was looking for her son. She had such authority in her voice, and Kaitlyn always guessed she was pretty hardcore when interrogating criminals. She could be intimidating, Erica Evans.

"Sorry, ma'am, but everyone is looking for their son. I can't let you pass, FBI or not." The cop put up his hands as a final warning. Erica turned, frustrated, and caught Kaitlyn standing before her, looking at the sky.

"I thought I told you to-"

"Mom?"

Erica didn't even need to ask. The striking fear blazing in her daughter's eyes said it all. Something was up there, something terrifying.

And Kaitlyn wasn't the only one seeing it.

Everyone's eyes were looking up, necks craned, breaths caught, and rightly so.

Hovering over the city, blocking the sun and casting a forboding shadow upon the streets was a large aircraft of sorts, but not like anything Kaitlyn had ever seen. It wasn't an airplane, or a helicopter. No, it was...something not of this world.

"Mom, what is-"

"I don't know, Kait," her mother replied quickly, protectively grabbing a hold of Kaitlyn's hand, squeezing it. Kaitlyn pried her attention away from the aircraft and looked at her mother.

"Mom, I'm not a kid, I don't need you to-"

Erica just stared back, eyes on fire.

No, this was not the time to argue with her mother.

"Come on, we have to find Tyler!" Erica announced, tugging on Kaitlyn's hand, pulling her through the barricades that the police officer had just denied her access to, and down the street.

"Mom, we're never gonna find him in this crowd!" Kaitlyn tried shouting over the conversations everyone was having. Erica didn't say anything, she just pulled Kaitlyn through the streams of people, tightening her grip on Kait's hand, like she thought if she let go for a second, she'd lose her.

Kaitlyn couldn't help but crane her neck and glance toward the sky every few seconds. What _was_ that thing? Was that what was responsible for that earthquake?

Suddenly, through the panic, Kaitlyn heard the familiar sound of her brother's voice.

"Mom?"

"Tyler!"

"Mom?"

And there he was, a cut on his face, his hair a complete mess, but he was here, he was safe.

Erica released Kaitlyn's hand long enough to engulf her eldest in a hug. Tyler clung back fiercely, his eyes ablaze. He was terrified, and why shouldn't he be? That thing in the sky, the earthquake. He'd gone through it all without his family.

"Are you okay?" Erica asked, pulling away from her son, holding his face to look at him. Kaitlyn took a breath out. So there wasn't going to be a blowout right now. She guessed Erica was more concerned with the hovering black aircraft over their city, and the safety of her children than punishing him for staying out all night.

That would come later, if her mother even remembered.

"I'm okay," Tyler replied.

Kaitlyn was preoccupied with something else. For the bottom of the aircraft, which looked like the skin off a reptile's back, suddenly began to transform. All the small scales rotated, and an image showed up, spanning all the little tiles to reveal a woman, blown up to look down on everyone.

"Guys," Kaitlyn said quietly, tugging on her brother's coat, her mother's arm. They saw what she'd seen, and Erica took a step forward, pushing her children behind her, shielding them with her arms.

This time, Kaitlyn didn't argue.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Don't be frightened." The woman in the sky greeted in a calming voice. "We mean you no harm."

Kaitlyn hardly believed that to be true. She'd been raised to think for herself, and as if she was just going to believe something was true just because someone said it was. Besides, she wasn't stupid; whatever this was, whatever this _thing_ was, it was from another planet. _So there is intelligent life on other planets._ Well, she hoped Tyler didn't decide to say _'I told you so.'_

Kaitlyn had always been a precocious child, highest in her grade and logical. Sometimes, it annoyed her brother to no end, he wasn't terrific in school, and he always felt like he lived his sister's academic shadow, even though she was three years younger. It didn't seem too long ago when the two siblings got into a stupid argument about whether or not there existed a possibility of life on other planets. Well, she guessed Tyler had been right all along; logic couldn't explain this one.

But the weird thing was, the image of the alien hovering over their city, well, she looked _human_. There was nothing about the woman that looked extra-terrestrial. She looked like some kind of movie star, she wasn't ugly by any means. And her smile, and her voice, it all added together in what Kaitlyn assumed was her way of trying to calm down the humans below her.

Kaitlyn's heart was thumping, because none of it seemed real. But there they stood in the middle of a street, surrounded by hundreds of people, barracades up and her mother doing what she could to protect her two children, craning their necks to listen and watch the visitor.

"This marks a momentous day for your race, and for our own. Before this day, we believed we were the only lifeform in this universe. We were wrong. We are excited to come to earth and meet with you." The woman smiled warmly. "My name is Anna, and I am the leader of my people. We would like to stay and become aquainted with you, but for us to do that, we need water, and a mineral abundant on your planet so we can survive. In exchange, we will share with you our technological advances. Soon, we will leave you, maybe even better off than you were before."

Kaitlyn's mind was reeling - what kind of technological advances could these people have that would better earth? That sparked her curiosity.

"Shortly, we will be making contact with your planet's leaders to discuss all of this, but until then, remember, we are of peace, always."

With that, and one final smile, Anna disappeared from the screen, and only seconds passed before the crowd erupted in applause.

Kaitlyn glanced around. Her mother wasn't clapping, she looked worried, maybe for the same reason Kaitlyn felt worried; aliens from outer space were on their planet. Peace or not, that was definitely weird. Then she caught sight of Tyler. He was smiling, and staring at the sky in awe and admiration. Great.

Erica clutched her children's arms and pushed them toward the car.

"Let's go."

* * *

Kaitlyn finished making three ham sandwiches while Tyler was glued to the television, waiting for what the rest of the world was waiting for; the alien queen, or whoever she was, was making her first television appearance, she would speak to the press. Tyler seemed excited to hear what she had to say. Their mother was on the phone with her partner from work. Kaitlyn sighed. What a typical afternoon - even with aliens roaming the world, her mother still wedged work into her schedule, and Tyler ignored her.

Still, she took a seat by Tyler, handing him a sandwich. He took it without a thank you, and starting to devour it.

"This is gonna be so cool," Tyler said more to himself. Kaitlyn wondered how many other people felt the same way she did; wary.

She wondered how her mother felt. It wasn't like they'd talked about it. The car ride home was silent, and as soon as they arrived home, Erica went straight to the telephone and Ty to the TV.

"Mom, it's starting!" Tyler yelled out. Well, that must have been enough, because Erica hung up the phone and joined her kids in the living room as Tyler cranked the volume. Silently, Kaitlyn handed her mother the last sandwich.

"Thanks, Mouse."

Well, at least there was a thank you, and she'd used her nickname for Kait. She was still remaining calm, at least.

Anna's speech was almost exactly what she had said from the ship, so what was the big deal? Kaitlyn didn't feel good about them, and maybe it was exciting to learn what kind of new technology they'd offer, but all Kaitlyn kept thinking about was all those Alien movies she wasn't allowed to watch, but had anyway. No, she didn't want to fall into the belief that these things were here for good, at least not yet.

"She's so hot!" Tyler said suddenly.

"I'm right here, man," Erica said without missing a beat. Kaitlyn smirked when Tyler's face went beet red.

"Okay sorry guys, I gotta run." Erica was already up, scarfing the last of her sandwich and grabbing her badge and gun she kept by the door.

Tyler didn't say anything, but Kaitlyn felt upset.

"You're going to work? Today?"

"Yeah, even with aliens, I still have terrorists to catch." Erica said with a bit of a grin.

Well, Kait wanted to argue, but what good would it do? Her mother would just go anyway.

Kaitlyn just kept her mouth shut.

Erica kissed each of her children on the top of their head and yelled 'bye' as she left the house. Kaitlyn hated all the crazy hours her mother worked at the FBI headquarters. She never could know how long her mother would spend there. Most nights, she was in bed before Erica even came home.

Abandoning her sandwich, Kaitlyn settled back and watched Tyler, who was still transfixed to the television.

"Doesn't any of this weird you out?" Kait asked, feeling frustrated. Didn't _anybody_ feel as skeptical as she did?

"What?"

"Aliens! Aliens from outer _space_! Come on, Ty, this kind of stuff doesn't just _happen_."

"Well, I told you I had a feeling there was something more out there." Tyler smirked. "Guess I was right."

"Ty, you have a feeling there's something more out there, because there _is_ something more out there. I've been telling you about God since-"

"Oh yeah," Tyler laughed sarcastically. "The church thing. The world's such a terrible place, Kait, why do you insist on filling your mind with useless crap like religion?"

"It's not useless, Ty, it's a relationship with Someone who _actually_ cares, not like these Visitors who are just pretending."

"You don't _know_ they're pretending!"

"Ty-"

"Look!" Tyler yelled, turning to her, his eyes wide with anger. "You can believe whatever you want, but don't push it on me!"

Well, that was enough of that. Ever since Kaitlyn started going to church with her best friend, Freddie, last year, Tyler had been less than thrilled. As long as it never came up, they got along fine. Erica encouraged Kaitlyn's involvement in the church, even though she didn't believe in it herself.

But with Tyler, one mention of church, religion or God made him angry, and now, with his sudden interest in the new aliens, he seemed even more ticked about it. Kaitlyn shut up.

"Fine, but I'm tired of watching this." Kaitlyn reached for the remote. "Let's see what else is on."

Tyler whipped the remote off the table before Kaitlyn got close.

"No way!" Tyler exclaimed, holding the remote up high, away from Kait's grasp. "I wanna see this."

"Well, who died and made _you_ king?" Kaitlyn laughed, jumping up to grab the remote. Tyler's face stretched into a goofy smile, avoiding Kait's attempts for the remote.

"I'm older, I get the remote by default!"

Giggling and getting elbowed in the ribs a few times, Kaitlyn eventually gave up. Tyler was right; she'd never get the remote away from him, and even though Tyler was laughing at her meaningless attempts, he wasn't giving up.

She punched Tyler playfully in the arm, and he laughed, but only half-heartedly. His attention was back on Anna, who was chatting it up with news anchor Chad Dekker. Kaitlyn wasn't interested, so she went to her bedroom to start some math, because even homework seemed preferable to earth's foreign invaders.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

It was nearing six o' clock, and Kaitlyn was still sprawled out on her bedroom floor, her head throbbing as she stared at the numbers and formulas in her textbook. Sure, she was smart, but math was not one of her strong suits. Tyler, on the other hand, was brilliant when it came to math, but there was no asking him, not tonight. An hour ago, after he finally peeled himself away from the television, he called his buddy Brandon and took off. Well, whatever. Kaitlyn was used to being home alone. Still, it felt oddly different, now that there were spaceships hovering all over the world. Suddenly, the world felt a little less safe.

Her jaws cracking as she stifled a yawn, she rolled over when the phone rang. She reached for the cordless phone she brought upstairs with her, and pressed 'talk.'

"Hello?" she said monotonously. She heard a quiet laugh on the other line.

"You sound _so_ thrilled, Kait," her mother replied. Kaitlyn couldn't help but smile.

"Well, I'm doing math homework. I'm not exactly going to be jumping for joy." She chewed on the end of her pencil as the numbers in front of her danced a dance she didn't know.

"I'm glad to hear alien invasion hasn't distracted you from school," Erica said.

"Well, you're _working _on alien day, why shouldn't I do homework?" Kaitlyn realized it came across as a little bitter, but she wouldn't deny how much she wanted her mother to be home. It wasn't like she was scared, but of all the days her mother _could_ take off, why not a day as momentous as this?

"Yeah, sorry about that Mouse, but I'm gonna be here late. I thought I'd give you guys a shout to let you know I'll be working right over dinner," Erica said with a disappointed tone to it.

Kaitlyn exhaled loudly, loud enough for her mother to hear, and she knew it. Every day, _every_ day her mother worked, for hours on end. And since her father left, her hours were longer, and Kaitlyn knew that wasn't the FBI. No, _that_ was her mother's choice.

"Fine," Kaitlyn mumbled, rolling over onto her back, staring at the ceiling. She imagined the Visitor's mothership hovering right over their house. Creepy.

"I know it sucks, Kaity, I'm sorry, I'm swamped. We've been able to link a sleeper cell to a group of terrorists we've been tracking for a long time. I've got to get to that warehouse and scope it out with Dale." Usually, Kaitlyn loved hearing about her mother's adventures with the FBI, but these stories were becoming more and more of an excuse to spend less time at home.

"It's okay, mom," Kaitlyn said, even though it wasn't. "I'll just microwave some pizza pockets."

"Nutritious," Erica replied sarcastically.

"Well, Ty's not here, so I'm not gonna make an actual meal just for me."

"Ty's not home?" Erica sounded upset by this. "Where is he?"

Kaitlyn shrugged, although Erica couldn't see that. "I dunno, out with Brandon?"

"Sorry, kiddo, I didn't realize you were home alone. You okay?"

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes. "Mom, this isn't the first time I've been home alone. It happens a lot, you know?" She sighed. "Anyway, there's mass tonight, so I'm meeting Freddie at church."

Erica was quiet for a minute, probably trying to figure out how to respond. She tried, Kaitlyn knew her mom tried, and maybe she should give her mom a little more room to be human, but it was hard. She needed her mom, and she wasn't around as much as she needed her to be.

"Alright, well have fun tonight. Be home by curfew, okay?"

_Why? You won't be here._

"Okay, bye mom."

Kaitlyn hung up the phone and gave up on trying to finish her math. She would do it after church, and even if she didn't, she doubted her teacher would actually expect homework to be turned in after something like aliens coming to earth.

* * *

Later that evening, Kaitlyn walked over to the Catholic church where Freddie said he would meet her outside on the front steps. Kait had been going with Freddie to this church for the last year now, ever since he'd finally had the guts to ask her. They'd been best friends since third grade, and Kaitlyn was surprised when he'd been so shy to ask her something as simple as attending church with him. She always knew he'd been religious, so it came as no surprise, but still, his cheeks were pink when he asked her.

Either way, she fell in love with the church, and the priests were really nice. There sure weren't a lot of people who went to the church anymore, and she and Freddie were the only two kids, but Freddie was devout, even though his dad refused to go with him anymore, not since his mom died. Sometimes, Kaitlyn felt bad for Freddie, but other times, she felt mad that at least _his_ mother had time to go to church with him, when she was alive.

"Hey Freddie," Kaitlyn greeted when she approached the giant church building, joined her friend on the steps.

"Hey, Kaiti," Freddie replied, jumping to his feet. "You're just in time, they're about to start."

The two headed inside, and stopped in their tracks when they realized there was no seat left in the church!

That was weird. Barely anyone came to this church. Kaitlyn tried to puzzle it out as she and Freddie squeezed into the back pew; why would all these people suddenly decide to start attending church?

And then, it hit her. The Visitors.

"Freddie, I bet they're all here because of the Visitors," she whispered. He smiled at her.

"They're so cool, huh?" he asked. Kaitlyn rolled her eyes. Great, so he was just like Tyler.

The organ music died down and Father Jack Landry, a younger priest here at St. James approached the pulpit. Kaitlyn smiled; she liked him. He wasn't like the other priest who just ignored the only two kids who stepped foot into their church. No, Jack actually _talked_ to her and Freddie.

As Jack began to talk, he didn't begin a sermon about the Garden of Eden, or about Jesus' death and resurrection. No, he began by addressing the V's. He spoke of being cautious, about not turning to them for all the answers, even though they've set up healing centers.

"They are not_ God_!" Jack announced, his heart in his voice. "Only God is to be looked to in times of distress."

Though it was a church service, apparently not everyone here knew what that meant, and they began to shout.

"They promised to bring peace!"

"They said they'll share healing with us!"

"Some people have already been healed because of the Visitors!"

"They're a miracle!"

"They've been sent by God Himself!"

Even Kaitlyn wanted to laugh at that one. As if God would send aliens to help humanity. If He would send anyone, it would be angels, or Jesus Himself, right? Not aliens. _That's not in the Bible_.

"Look, I know the V's are exciting, and new, but they are not God, and we must exercise caution not to turn to them as idols, or false gods. The Bible states-"

"Hey, Father Landry!" A voice rang out from the back of the church. All eyes turned to the man in the wheelchair at the back of the church. Kaitlyn recognized him as Roy, a regular attendee of St. James. She'd hardly said two words to him, but she knew he'd been in that wheelchair his whole life.

But now, with the eyes of the entire congregation upon him, Roy grasped the arms of his wheelchair, and with little effort, rose to his feet.

Kaitlyn's heart stopped, and the congregants exploded in shouts of shock and awe as the wheelchair-bound man stood on his feet before the church.

Kaitlyn turned her head and stared up at Father Landry, seeing the same surprise in his eyes she felt in her heart. It was a miracle.

But miracles were supposed to come from God, and the next words out of Roy's mouth denied God entirely.

"They healed me," he exclaimed proudly. "The Visitors healed me! They've been setting up healing centres all over and they took me first. They made me walk again, and I got no more pain!"

Some people cheered, some people remained skeptical, one person even shouted out a "hallelujah!" Kaitlyn swallowed, but as the crowd continued to divide, Jack Landry continued.

"I know what this looks like to some of you, and be warned that the Visitors are not gods. All they have is advanced technologies to heal things our technologies haven't discovered yet. This is not a miracle, only _God_ can cause miracles to happen!" Landry professed.

Again, the crowd went wild.

"If God is such a miracle-worker, then why didn't _He_ heal this man?"

"The V's are God-sent!"

"No, the V's _are_ God, how else could they heal that guy?"

And with that, people began to file out of the church, confused and divided. Even the church's most avid attenders began to leave, and Kaitlyn could only hope it wasn't a permanent decision on their parts.

Kait's stomach was churning inside. The Visitors had only been here for mere hours, and chaos was already ensuing. What would this mean for the faith community? Would any of the church's attendants come back? Did people actually believe the V's were from Heaven, were better than God? That was _terrible_!

"Well, Kaiti, I'm gonna head. If there's no church, there's no point in staying. I think I'll surf the web for a while," Freddie said, standing to leave.

"Alright, meet me on chat later?" Kaitlyn asked.

"Sure, see ya." Freddie took off out the church, and Kaitlyn realized she was the only one left, except for Jack, who stood at the pulpit looking terribly defeated.

Sucking in a breath, Kaitlyn approached the pulpit, staring up at her priest with curious eyes.

"Father Landry?" she asked, as the man's attention focused in on her. "These people won't believe what they said forever, will they? I mean, they're probably just excited right now. They can't believe the V's are God forever, can they?" Kaitlyn hardly felt sure about anything anymore, but she was sure of one thing; her faith in God would not be shaken. Screw the Visitors; God was here first.

Landry heaved a sigh.

"I don't know, Kaitlyn, faith is all about believing without having to see, but people don't like that. It's easier to believe in what you can see, what you can touch, what you can explain. True faith doesn't work that way, that's why it's called faith. Right now, the Visitors are drawing a lot of attention, because they're tangible, they're new, and they can do things mankind has never even dreamed of." Landry seemed distracted, like he was talking more to himself rather than a 13-year-old girl. Kaitlyn swallowed, staring up at her priest.

"You're not gonna close the church down because of this, are you?" She wanted to know.

Jack Landry met her eyes for the first time, cracked the smallest semblance of a smile.

"No," he affirmed. "No matter who walks in these doors, or who walks out of these doors, I'll be here, doing what I've been called to do."

It brought Kaitlyn just enough relief to help her feel better; the V's could change a lot of things, but at least some things would stay the same.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

That night on web chat, all Freddie could talk about were the V's. Kaitlyn, tired of hearing about them, told Freddie she had homework and crawled into bed. Tyler didn't get home until late, and her mother came home even later. Kaitlyn didn't allow herself to drift off to sleep until she knew both of them were home safe.

So it made sense that she was a little groggy the next morning. Rolling out of bed, she managed to get dressed and pack her school bag while dragging herself along. Checking to make sure it hadn't all been a dream, she peeked out her bedroom window, and groaned to herself when she saw that massive mothership still hovering off in the distance.

Kaitlyn stumbled down the stairs into the kitchen, where her mother was brewing coffee. Kaitlyn was surprised to see her; she figured Erica would have taken off early for work.

"Hey mom," Kaitlyn greeted as she took a spot at the island counter. "I thought you already left."

"Morning sweetie," Erica greeted with a smile and a kiss on the head. "I'm leaving in a few, I was just hoping you might be able to tell me where Tyler is."

Kaitlyn wanted to roll her eyes - it seemed like that was Kaitlyn's biggest responsibility, keeping tabs on her older brother. Shouldn't it be the other way around? Weren't older brothers supposed to be looking out for their little sisters? Why was it that out of everyone in this house, it seemed like Kaitlyn, the youngest of the household, was in charge of keeping everyone together?

"I haven't seen him since yesterday, but I know he was home last night," Kaitlyn said honestly.

"I know, I checked, but I heard him take off pretty early this morning." Erica sighed. "Kaiti, I'm worried about his obsession with the V's. He's already posting things all over Facebook about the V's, what he's calling 'spreading hope.' It's been a day, he's already sucked in."

Kaitlyn breathed out - what was she supposed to do about it?

"Anyway, Kaiti-B, I gotta run, if you hear from your brother, let me know. Somehow, I have a bad feeling he won't be at school." Erica grabbed her bag and leaned over to kiss Kaitlyn's head again. "Be good."

"Always," Kaitlyn replied as she watched her mother rush out of the house.

Kaitlyn sighed - once again, she was alone.

Deciding against breakfast, she pulled out her cellphone and texted her brother.

_Where R U?_

She wanted him here, so she could yell at him. It wasn't fair that he got to sneak out whenever he wanted and leave Erica worrying like crazy, and Kaitlyn to be the one who was _supposed_ to know everything. _Yeah, it's not like Tyler tells me anything anymore._ No, not since the divorce, not really. He shut down. Now, it was all about the V's.

Her phone sang the chorus of 'Teardrops on My Guitar.'

A message from Tyler.

_I M on mother ship w/ Brandonn. So cool! Dont tell mom!_

Kaitlyn wanted to scream! So he _was_ skipping school, and where was he instead? On the mother ship with aliens. Kaitlyn felt so torn - her mother had asked her to let her know if she'd heard from Tyler, and here he was, swearing her to secrecy once again. Frustrated with getting caught in the middle once again, she decided to let it go, not bothering to text her brother back, not bothering to call her mother.

Let them figure it out for once.

* * *

Kaitlyn had hoped she could go to school as a way of forgetting about the V's, of Tyler's new obsession with them that would no doubt cause all kinds of conflict at home, but to no avail. Not only was her homeroom teacher absolutely _smitten_ with the V's and all their promised technologies, but Freddie was _still_ going on about them.

"I'm trying to get my dad to get me access to the mother ship. I want to get up there _so_ bad! What do you think it's like up there?" he asked over lunch. Kaitlyn only shrugged.

"I don't know, if you really want to know, I'll ask Ty later. He skipped school today to go up there." Geez, you would have thought Kaitlyn just announced she was best friends with the President of the United States, the way Freddie freaked out and bugged her about it all day. Was there any place she could go to get away from the V's.

Walking home from school that day alone, trying to forget about the 2-page paper she was required to write about how America could integrate the lifestyles of the V's into their own ways, she tried texting Tyler again.

_Where R U?_

It seemed like that was the question she was always asking him. Well, at least he answered her. Anytime her mother tried texting Tyler, he flat out ignored her. That was what made it so hard; Erica knew Tyler told his sister these things. Kaitlyn was just the middle man.

Her phone buzzed.

_peace ambassador headquarters. B home l8er. If mom asks, tell her im brandons._

Great, more lies. No, not this time.

_Tell her urself!_

He wasn't going to like that, not at all, but let him get angry. She was tired of this whole set up.

Sure enough, his text came along.

_Wut's ur prob?_

Kaitlyn decided to ignore him, shoving her cell in her pocket, picking up the pace as she headed home. She knew her mother wouldn't be home, and Tyler obviously wasn't. Maybe that was okay - seeing her mother would mean lying for Tyler, and seeing Tyler would mean a fight about how angry it made her to lie in the first place. Yes, being alone seemed the best solution.

And yet that made her sadder than she'd felt in a long time; once upon a time, spending time with her family meant everything to her.

And maybe it still would, if there weren't all this conflict ruining their lives.

* * *

Her homework was done, and Kaitlyn checked the digital clock in her room - 9:45p.m. No sign of her mother, no sign of Tyler.

Kaitlyn rolled over on her back, her fluffed pillows behind her, the stuffed kitten she'd had since she was born on her right side, a half-finished _The Old Curiosity Shop_ to her left. She exhaled loudly. She wondered if a person could literally go crazy from loneliness.

She decided not to find out; she grabbed the phone and dialed Freddie's number.

He answered after two rings.

"Hey Freddie," Kaitlyn said.

"Hi Kaiti," Freddie replied. "Your calling late."

"It's not _that_ late." Kaitlyn laughed. "Is it past your bedtime, Freddie?"

"Hardly." Freddie scoffed. "I'm still working on that V paper."

"Ugh, what a stupid assignment."

"I thought it was pretty sweet, actually." Freddie gasped. "Did you talk to your brother about the mothership? Man, I bet it was _so_ great! Did he see any alien experiments? What about the architecture? What about-"

"Chill, Freddie, Tyler isn't even home yet. I haven't seen him all day, so I haven't asked him." Kaitlyn sighed. "Besides, I probably won't get a chance too. I'm pretty sure he's mad at me."

"Again? He's always mad about something."

"Yeah, I know."

"Well, I better go, my dad's giving me 'the look."

"Which one? The 'get-off-the-phone-and-do-homework' look, or the 'are-you-talking-to-your-girlfriend' look?" Kaitlyn giggled.

"The first one." Freddie laughed. "He stopped giving me the second look when I told him I would stop making my famous spaghetti and meatballs if he kept calling you my girlfriend."

"Well it's about time." Kaitlyn sighed. "Guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"See ya."

Kaitlyn hung up the phone and heard the front door slam shut. She propped herself up on her elbows, happy to hear noise. The house seemed so quiet when it was just her, even if she _was_ on the phone.

Footsteps up the stairs, and then a blur of Tyler past her room.

"Hey Ty!" she called after him. Silence, and then Tyler peeked his head into the room. He didn't look mad, so maybe he was over her text message.

"So, why didn't you go to school?" Kaitlyn wanted to know as she cuddled her stuffed kitten, glaring at Tyler. Honestly, she felt like the older sibling most of the time. How would life be different if _she_ was the rebellious one? How would their mother cope?

"Don't get all goody-goody on me, Kay," Tyler spat. "Brandon got tickets to check out the mother ship, and it was for today. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! How could I _not_ go up there?"

"So just tell mom that." Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow. "Your school called and left a message. She'll know you cut school."

Tyler shrugged. "Good thing she's not home; I'll just delete it."

"Come on, Ty!"

"What, are you gonna tell on me?" He said it with such disdain, Kaitlyn couldn't help but exhale loudly and throw the stuffed animal at him hard.

"No, not this time." She glared. "But geez, Tyler, I wish you'd stop shutting her out."

"What do you think she's doing with us?" Tyler retaliated. Kaitlyn would argue, but she couldn't blame her big brother for feeling that way. Honestly, that was what it felt like sometimes, but no, she wouldn't go there. The last thing this family needed was a two-against-one scenario.

That was when Kaitlyn noticed her brother carrying something - a folded blue jacket.

"What's that, did you go shopping too?" she asked sarcastically. Tyler grinned, and opened it up.

Kaitlyn tried to figure out why it looked so familiar, the blue with silver patchwork. Where had she-

Oh.

The V's.

"What is that for?" she asked warily. Her brother had spent the entire aboard an alien mothership, naive with wonder and excitement; who _knew_ what he had done, what he had signed up for?

"I signed up to be a peace ambassador!" Tyler exclaimed. "Did you see the commercials they've been posting?"

Kaitlyn had.

"So I joined! I'll be doing a good thing for the V's. All they want is peace, and there's a lot of people who are angry about the V's. So it's our job to help maintain that peace among the human race," Tyler explained, excitement etched across every part of his face.

"So how did you manage that one?" Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow, crossed her arms. "I've seen those commercials. If you're under 18, you need a parental signature to become a peace ambassador. You haven't seen mom all day."

Tyler was silent. Kaitlyn felt her stomach drop.

"You forged her signature, didn't you?"

"Well, what else was I supposed to do?"

"_Ask_ her?"

"Oh come on, Kay, you _know_ she'd never say yes. She's so suspiscious of the V's!"

"Can you blame her? Come on, Ty, they've been here a day. How can you trust them, just like that?"

"Look, I don't expect you to understand, and I don't even care if you do or not, but just, you can't tell mom."

Kaitlyn felt her stomach churning. There was that guilt plaguing her again.

"Ty, don't make me lie for you anymore!" she cried.

"What would you rather have, Kaitlyn? If you tell her the truth, she'll get mad, I'll get mad, we'll fight, and it won't be pretty, but if you lie, that won't happen," Tyler explained. Kaitlyn saw red; damn Tyler and him knowing how much she hated conflict. Damn him for using that against her, to _blackmail_ her!

"Ty, why can't you just tell her?" Kaitlyn asked quietly.

Tyler sighed, folding up his shirt, reaching down to rescue Kaitlyn's kitten.

"Because." He tossed back the animal. "Mom isn't who she used to be."

Silence ensued between the two siblings for only a moment, but it felt an eternity; them just staring at each other, both knowing things had changed since their father left. Both Tyler and Kaitlyn had different reactions to the whole thing, but that wasn't the issue right now. In the end, Kaitlyn agreed not to tell their mother about Tyler signing up for the peace ambassador program, but it left her crying herself to sleep.

When had their family fallen apart?


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Erica was exhausted. She swore, this day was making her feel every one of her 40 years. She'd been at her desk all day working on a case she and her partner of ten years, Dale, had been working on for what seemed like forever. It felt like there was finally going to be headway! Only yesterday, the two of them were able to locate an abandoned warehouse where it looked like a sleeper cell terrorist operation had been underway. They'd been too late; they'd completely cleared out, but it was something at least.

Erica felt drowsy, glanced at the clock. It was getting later. By now, the kids would be home from school. She thought of Kaitlyn, who was probably just unpacking her homework and getting right to it. That kid was too good; she followed every rule, did her homework, got straight A's. She was the complete opposite of Tyler. Well, at least recently. Tyler had always been a good kid, and he still was, but he'd been stuck in this rebellious stage ever since Joe left. For whatever reason, Tyler chose to blame her for the divorce, and he acted out. Skipping school, avoiding her, sneaking out. Erica was sure her son had skipped school yesterday, but the school never called. Maybe she was overreacting.

She should call home, talk to her kids, let them know she was thinking about them. Yes, she would, just as soon as she finished checking out this victim's cell phone track record. When they'd gone to that abandoned warehouse yesterday, they found a dead man with nothing on him but a wallet. Once they were able to properly ID the victim, they'd gotten a hold of his cell phone records, and now, Erica was searching through his recent call list and text messages. She could barely keep her eyes open, she was so tired. How great would it be to go home early, make the kids a nice, home-cooked meal, talk about their day?

Erica sighed; why bother? Tyler wouldn't go for it. Kaiti might, but even she seemed upset about something lately. Was Erica really spending too much time working?

She didn't think so, but maybe she'd have to ask the kids.

Something caught her attention on the victim's text message list.

_Meeting Thursday night. At the abandoned mill factory on Fourth. Be prepared for the test._

"Dale!" Erica called over to her partner, who was about three desks over. Dale caught her eye and jogged over to her desk, all ears.

"What do ya got?" he asked.

She showed him, caught his eye.

"That's tonight." She pointed out. "What do you say we crash their little party?"

* * *

There it was; the old mill factory on Fourth, sketchy-looking as ever. Erica sat quietly in the passenger seat of the car her partner was driving, scoping out the place.

"Erica, I think this is a bad idea." Dale pointed out. "I think we should have requested back up."

"The last thing we want is to scare them all back into hiding." Erica met his eyes. "Besides, you saw that abandoned warehouse earlier. Someone tipped them off, that's why they cleaned house so fast. Maybe neither you or I want to admit this, but someone in the FBI is leaking our intel. Come on, Dale, we've been trying to nail these guys for years, and now we've got something, so I'm going in there for this meeting, so we can figure out what the hell is going on."

Dale just stared at her, as though he hoped he'd be able to talk her out of it with his eyes.

Before Erica could even respond, her cell phone rang. She exhaled loudly, thinking it might be her boss, wondering where they were.

She checked the call display. _'Home.'_

She sighed; bad timing.

She answered anyway.

"Hi, mom." It was Kaitlyn.

"Hey honey." Erica rubbed her forehead, distracted.

"Uh, I was just wondering when you're coming home," Kaitlyn said in her meek little voice. Erica immediately felt a pang of guilt.

"I don't know, Kaiti-B." She looked toward the warehouse. "You know what? Can I call you later? This isn't exactly a good time."

"I know, and I'm sorry, but...Ty and me had this fight last night, and now he won't talk to me, and I just...I don't know, I just hoped..."

Erica heard the tears in her daughter's voice, felt her own heart turning inside out, wanting nothing more than to rush home and hold her little girl until all the tears ran out. She knew she wasn't the only one who had to deal with Tyler's mood swings.

"I'll be home as soon as I can, baby girl." Erica glanced toward the factory. "There's just something real important I gotta do first."

There was a pause, and Erica knew she'd said the wrong thing. Nothing, _nothing_ was more important than her children. Why did it always feel like she had to choose?

"Kaiti?"

"Okay, sorry to bug you, mom." Kaitlyn's voice was a whisper. "Bye."

The line went dead, and Erica felt the start of a tear stinging her eye. No, not now, she would have to deal with that later. Right now, she had a job to do. Kaitlyn would be alright; her kids were resilient. She'd talk to her daughter later.

"Was that your kid?" Dale asked, pulling Erica out of her thoughts.

"Yeah, Kaiti." Erica sighed, pocketed her cellphone. "I'm going in."

"Maybe-"

"Dale, stop trying to talk me out of this." Erica glared at her partner. "If I'm not back in an hour, _then_ call for backup."

Erica left the car, headed toward the factory, uncertain of what was in there, but going anyway.

* * *

The leader's name was Georgie, that much Erica discovered from her first ten minutes. Though nervous about stepping into unchartered territory, knowing nothing about the reasons for this meeting, or who would be present, she seemed to blend in fairly well. Nobody seemed skeptical about her presence, which was just fine with her, considering she was unarmed; her gun was in the car with Dale.

But ten minutes in, and things had gone from strange to beyond weird. Before he even started the meeting, he required everyone to take a test. Erica, needing to avoid suspiscion, went along with it, ignoring her hammering heart as someone stuck her with a needle of anesthetic before someone else carved at the skin in her neck to prove there was bone underneath her skin, and not reptile skin.

Reptile skin? These people must be crazy!

But then Georgie began this sermon about the V's. Erica hadn't expected that, not at all. This was supposed to be about terrorists. Why would the victim of a terrorist kidnapping be interested in a meeting about the V's? A brief thought flashed through her mind as Georgie warned everyone that the V's weren't who they said they were.

What if? What if the terrorists were affiliated with the V's? Worse, what if the terrorists _were_ the V's?

"They may say they're new here, but they've been here for years already!" Georgie was saying. "And they're not using their real bodies! That's why you took the test. I had to make sure you weren't V's!"

Erica listened with skepticism, but also concern. She'd been suspiscious of the V's since their arrival, suspiscious of their intentions, frightened to consider their true reasons for being here. Sure, she would give them the benefit of the doubt; maybe they _had_ come for peace. But she hadn't been able to ignore the sinking feeling in her gut that there was something more.

And now, Georgie was saying there was.

"They're not here to help us! They've been here for years, invading us, learning more about us so they can plan their attack."

Erica's skepticism caused her to speak out.

"How do you know they've been here for years?" She wanted to know, feeling every eye on her. "Do you have proof?"

Georgie glared at her, and Erica wondered, for a brief second, if her outburst had brought too much attention on herself, but before Georgie could answer her question, someone stepped forward, holding out a manilla envelope.

"It is true." A man, a priest, judging by the collar he wore, pulled a series of pictures from an envelope. "I didn't believe it either, until a man came to me at the church today, giving me these pictures. Pictures of Visitors who have been staging themselves as humans here for years."

The priest handed the pictures to Erica, and she sifted through them. Of course, she didn't recognize any of these people, but how had the priest gotten his hand on these? How could they be sure these people were V's?

But then, it all seemed to make sense, because there in front of her was a face she had come to know over the last few months, while she and Dale had been working on busting these terrorists.

The man staring back at her from his photographic prison was one of the terrorists they'd been trying to catch. According to the priest, he was a V. Erica swallowed, wondered. Was her theory correct after all? Were the Visitors involved in the terrorism? Was there a sleeper cell of Visitors?

Before anyone could ask questions, see the pictures, or argue any claims, gunfire broke out, and everyone dropped!

Instinctively, Erica reached for her own gun before realizing she was unarmed. Breathing hard, she scurried behind a large crate and took in the situation. A group of men in black were gunning people down with rifles. Assassins. Someone had tipped these guys off about the meeting?

Erica had an unsettling feeling bubble in her gut; were these guys V's? Had the V's found out about this meeting, and were coming to clean up the mess?

A blow from behind distracted Erica from her thoughts!

She quickly rolled over to look into the eyes of her attacker.

No.

Dale.

No time to process, he jumped her, and wrapped his thick hands around Erica's neck, squeezed, his eyes on fire!

She grabbed his wrists, used every ounce of strength she had trying to pry his murdering hands away from her neck, but no luck. She felt herself wanting to succomb to unconsciousness, but no, she couldn't! She had children to think of.

Erica, grunting for breath, stretched out her arm, patted the ground in search of something, _anything_, that could help her.

Her fingers grazed it, something metal, something big. Wrapping her fingers around it, she used all her strength to bring the metal pipe down hard on Dale's head.

It worked. He went down, rolled off of her, unconscious.

Erica tried to catch her breath, tried to take it all in. Her partner, Dale, her partner for _years_, had just attacked her, tried to _kill_ her! This couldn't be happening.

She stared at her unconscious partner for a few seconds, trying to fathom what had just happened here, when she realized the place she had hit him had ripped his skin.

Ripped it deep.

Erica swallowed. Was it true? Was Dale a V? Were they really reptilian?

She only had to move a little to see what she'd already known since he first attacked her.

Beneath that gash was green skin, _reptile_ skin. Her partner was a V. And he'd been here for years.

Georgie was right!

Fear pumping through her veins like fire, Erica ran for her life!

* * *

She hadn't been the only one. She bumped right into that priest who brought the pictures, who grabbed hold of her arm and led the way, and they both ran as far from the building as possible.

Now, the two of them were sitting side by side, both shaken by everything that had gone down that night, by the reality that the V's were not who they said they were, that they were among the minority, knowing the truth. The priest had introduced himself as Jack Landry, but introductions seemed trivial at a time like this. Under normal circumstances, a priest would be the last person Erica would make acquaintances with, but now, they were drawn together, attached in ways that hardly seemed right. They had a common enemy, and they were among the only few who knew it.

"I..." Erica started after ages of silence. She couldn't even meet Jack's eyes. She stared ahead intensely. "I don't even know who I can trust anymore."

Her partner, her partner for _years, _was a Visitor, an alien from outer space who had just tried to _kill_ her! All this time, all the lies. What about his wife? What about all those late stakeouts? What about all those deep conversations they'd had about her recent divorce, her _children_! Was there a hidden agenda in being her partner? Were they gathering information for their eventual invasion of earth?

Jack was silent. His silence showed his understanding. How could they trust anybody? If Dale was a V, _anybody_ could be a V. It could be her boss, it could be her lawyer, it could be her kids' teachers, their _friends_! What could she do to protect them? What could she do about _any_ of it?

"Jack, we have to do something," Erica said, finally turning to meet the priest's eye. He caught her eyes, fear brimming in them.

"I know," he said simply. "But what can we do?"

"They _killed_ innocent people because they knew we were onto them, but some of us escaped. I don't know where those people went, but we're not alone. Somehow, we have to build a resistance against the Visitors, recruit people, warn people the V's are dangerous, but we can't do it all at once. We have to start small; the last thing we want is to draw attention to ourselves." Erica spoke with conviction; she knew how dangerous it sounded, how impossible it seemed, but right now, she couldn't think of any better options. She had children to think of. "We'll fight them."

"It won't be easy, Erica." Jack pointed out. "I mean look at the head start they've already got. People are flocking to them, their healing centres, worshipping them like gods!"

"I know." Erica sighed. "They're arming themselves with the most powerful weapon out there. Devotion."

"People cling to results, and the Visitors have come through with everything they've said they would do. People are healed of ailments they've had for years. How can we fight against that?" Jack asked.

"I don't know, but we have to find a way." Erica met Jack's eyes again. "But I know what you mean about people treating the Visitors like gods. My own son is already smitten with them."

"You have a son?" Jack asked. Erica smiled, welcoming the lighter change in conversation.

"Yeah, Tyler, he's 17. I have a daughter too, Kaitlyn, she's 13. The two of them are polar opposites, I mean, sometimes I can't believe they both came from the same parents. Tyler's going through an acting-out phase, and Kaitlyn's just...well she's always so good." Erica smiled at Jack. "You know, she goes to church. I gotta say, I have no idea what got her on that kick. I think she went with a friend of hers, because I never taught them religion, that's for sure."

Jack smiled lightly. "What church is she going to?"

"Uh." Erica strained to remember the name of it. "Oh, St. James, the one over on Lake Street."

"Get out! That's my church!" Jack exclaimed. "Kaitlyn. Yeah, I know her. Well, I mean, I've spoken to her. You can't miss the two of them; they're the only two kids who come to mass."

"Yeah, she's definitely not like most kids her age."

"Huh." Jack crossed his arms. "So you're Kaitlyn's mom. She talks about you, sometimes."

"Oh great." Erica laughed.

"Nah, it's always good things, she thinks the world of you."

That brought a smile to Erica's face. Kaitlyn, her little angel. It was enough to get her through the night, enough to give her the strength to consider the future. There was a war coming, a vicious war that would be impossible to fight, but she had something worth fighting _for_.

For now, that would have to be enough motivation to move forward.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Exhausted, Erica stumbled through her front door late that night, her eyes drooping with desperation for sleep, but the fear pulsing through her brought her to the realization that no matter how tired she was, she wouldn't be able to sleep, not after what she'd seen tonight, not after everything that happened.

She left Jack only moments ago; the two of them had agreed they were in this together, and vowed they had to be careful, knowing they could trust absolutely _no one!_ She wondered if Jack was as exhausted as she was.

As soon as Erica crossed the threshhold to her home, she immediately remembered her phone conversation with Kaitlyn, what, a couple of hours ago now? She'd been upset, wanted her mom to come home. How close had Erica come to never coming home again? No, she couldn't let Kaitlyn know that. Her children had to be in the dark; how could she, as a mother, instill that kind of fear in her children? No, it was her responsibility to protect them, even if it meant protect them from the truth. For now, that was the best option; the truth was a dangerous thing to be involved with, especially now.

The house was dead silent, and all the lights were out. Kaitlyn must already be in bed, and Erica could only guess Tyler wasn't even home yet. Well, maybe that wasn't the worst thing; usually, if Erica's path crossed Tyler's, there was a disagreement to be had, and this night, Erica certainly didn't have the energy for that.

She sauntered into the kitchen, pulled out a bottle of vodka and poured herself a shot. It calmed her, a little. All the vodka in the world wouldn't erase the horror she'd beheld this night.

"Hey mom."

Erica spun around and there was Tyler, standing in the kitchen doorway, a backpack slung over his shoulder. He must have just gotten home.

"Ty, hey! You scared me," Erica said, forcing a laugh. Tyler shrugged with that corny smile.

"Sorry. I'm, uh, I'm gonna go do my homework," her son said awkwardly before turning toward the stairs. Erica, fear still seizing her heart, stepped forward.

"Hey Ty? I have a favour to ask you."

Tyler looked intrigued.

"Honey, I know you're excited about the V's, because they're new and cool, but I don't think it's a good idea to jump in too fast. I mean, we don't know a lot about them yet, and until we do," Erica paused, knowing her son wasn't going to react the greatest, "I want you to stay away from them."

Tyler's face dropped, twisted around as though he wanted to argue, as though he couldn't understand why his mother would request something so ridiculous.

But he was silent, just considered her before he managed a small nod.

"Okay, mom." He shrugged. "If that's what you want."

What? It was that easy? All the rebelling, all the arguing, all the resistance she'd been dealing with her oldest child, and now, he wasn't fighting back?

It was unlike him, but she'd take it, she'd take anything right now.

"Thank you, honey." Erica engulfed her son in a hug and felt warmed to the core when he held her back. "I just want the two of you to be safe."

"We are, mom," Tyler tried to assure his mother. Erica managed a nod.

"I'm glad."

Tyler smiled, stepping back slowly. "Anyway, homework."

"Don't stay up too late, Bubba."

"I won't, mom."

* * *

Lies. All lies. Was Tyler even _capable _of telling the truth? Did he think he could just pull the 'good son' act and convince his mother he would stay away from the V's just because he said he would? Kaitlyn was _seething_ as she listened to the conversation happening downstairs. Though it was late, she'd been chatting with Freddie online, lounging in her pjs when she heard her mother coming home, heard Tyler coming home not long afterward, waited for the fight.

But they didn't fight. It seemed a decent conversation, the first time in a long time a conversation between Erica and Tyler didn't end up in some kind of fight.

But it was replaced with lies!

Kaitlyn wanted to scream in frustration, yank her hair out from their roots. Last night, he admitted to joining the V's Youth Peace Ambassador program, _forged_ his mother's signature, sworn her to secrecy, and now he was lying to his mother, pretended like he actually cared about listening to his mom's concerns. Couldn't he _hear_ how serious she sounded, how genuinely concerned she was? How could he just stand there and blatantly go against that kind of concern?

She was so different than her brother, and right now, she hated him for expecting her to keep such a huge secret from their mother. Torn, she was absolutely torn.

Story of her life.

Tyler came up the stairs, passed her room without even glancing in. Kaitlyn stared into the empty hall for a while, wanting nothing more than to trail after him, lecture him, hit him, but no, she knew better than that. Instead, she spun her swivel chair back toward her computer, opened Facebook.

She didn't even hear her mother coming up the stairs.

"Kaiti!" Erica chastized. Kaitlyn spun her chair around to find her mother standing in the doorway. Kaitlyn couldn't help but notice how tired her mother looked; it must have been some night.

"Hey mom."

"Baby, what are you still doing up?" Erica came into the room, sat on Kaitlyn's bed. "It's late, you're supposed to be in bed."

Still feeling bitter about Tyler, angry about the lies, and upset her mother wasn't here tonight when she could have really used her, Kaitlyn shrugged.

"Come on, mom, I'm not a kid." She sighed, staring at her computer screen. "Why should I have a bedtime anyway?"

Erica lifted an eyebrow at her youngest child.

"Because you _are_ a kid, sorry to inform you." She cracked a smile. "Come on, honey, turn your computer off, get into bed." Erica patted Kaitlyn's bed and pulled away the covers. Kaitlyn could see her mother wasn't planning on leaving until Kaitlyn got into bed, so she heaved a dramatic sigh and powered down her computer. She was too tired to argue, and besides, was it really the worst thing in the world that her mother was _actually_ here to tuck her in for once?

Kaitlyn crawled into her ready bed and abandoned her glasses on her nightstand. Erica drew her fluffy blanket over her daughter and then noticed, for the first time since coming into this room, the sadness in her daughter's eyes. Guilt plagued Erica once again; was this because of the distant phone call from earlier? Was Kaitlyn upset at her?

"You okay?" Erica asked, trying to forget about everything that had happened tonight; right now, she had to focus on her kid. Evil aliens trying to rule the world would have to wait.

"Of course, mom."

Erica could see through her daughter like glass.

"Come on, Kaiti-B, we talk about stuff when we're upset, right?" she asked, shifting closer to her little girl, grabbing a hold of her little hand. "So, what's bugging you?"

Kaitlyn watched her mother, wanting so badly to tell her everything, cry like a baby about how angry it made her to be stuck in the middle of all the conflict, of having to carry a burden way too heavy for her young shoulders, of wanting her mother to be around a little more, of wanting to tell her the truth about Tyler's involvement with the V's.

But she couldn't; it would just make things worse. For now, she would have to settle on the issues that didn't involve Ty.

"I don't know, I just..." Kaitlyn sighed, avoiding eye contact. "I just, you know, that phone call earlier, I just..."

"I know, baby, I'm sorry I cut you off earlier. Things were a little...hectic." Hectic? She was almost killed, by her partner. She discovered a secret about the Visitors that only a _handful_ of people knew, and that information alone could cost her her life, maybe even her kids' safety. As if hectic was the right word.

"It's just...you work all the time, mom." Kaitlyn sighed. Why did this have to be so hard? She already felt tears stabbing at her eyes. "I just wish you were home tonight."

"I wanted to be, Kaiti, I hope you know there is _no_ place I would rather be than here with you and Tyler." Erica squeezed her daughter's hand. "I know you don't really want to hear this, but things...things got really busy tonight."

Kaitlyn knew she could keep laboring the issue, make her mother feel terrible for not being around, but Kaitlyn could tell it killed her mother almost as much as Kaitlyn. This was just the way things were right now, and Erica was probably stressed about the divorce and Tyler too, maybe Kaitlyn should cut her mother some slack. So, instead of complaining anymore, she sighed once, and inquired after her mother's job.

"Busy because of the V's?" Kaitlyn wanted to know.

Erica thought of the ambush, of the reptilian skin beneath Dale's false skin, of the reality of a coming war.

"You could say that," Erica replied, managing a tiny smile for her inquisitive daughter as she moved her hair out of her face. Kaitlyn puckered her brow as she saw a bandaid appear on Erica's neck.

"Mom, what happened?" Kaitlyn pointed to the spot just under Erica's ear, curious what was under the bandaid. Erica's heart skipped a beat, remembering the anesthetic, the scapel...

"Honey, it's nothing." Erica raised an eyebrow. "And you're stalling. You need to get some sleep; it's late."

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes, feeling irritation and hurt overtaking her all over again.

"Why do you always keep secrets from me?" she whined. "You still treat me like a baby sometimes, mom, and I'm _not!_"

Erica couldn't help but smile. How could she deny it? Her little girl, the apple of her eye, was growing up, too fast. She was already in junior high, a budding beauty, probably thinking about boys, though she never talked about them. She was no longer the little girl who tugged at Erica's jean cuffs to ask yet another question, or the child who spilled flour all over the floor when she tried to help bake cookies. No, she couldn't pull anything over her daughter's eyes anymore.

"I know you're not, honey. Sometimes I forget you're getting older, because in my eyes, you'll always be my baby."

"But _mom!_"

"You'll understand one day when you have kids of your own."

Kaitlyn sighed, dramatically pressing her head into her pillow. "I _hate_ when you say that."

Erica leaned in, kissed her daughter's forehead.

"I know you do." She paused. "But you won't forever."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"It's cruel and unusual punishment for teachers to subject their students to biology homework on the weekend!" Kaitlyn complained as she and Freddie poured over their thick biology textbooks at the local library. Freddie stifled a yawn.

"Whatever, Kaiti, you probably love it. Even if it is the weekend, you still sound way smarter than any other eighth grader. They should've skipped you ahead a year," he said, doodling a dragon in the margins of his book. Kaitlyn shot him a glare.

"What, you trying to get rid of me?"

Freddie raised an eyebrow.

"Nah." He slammed his book shut. "Seriously, I don't care _how_ much homework we've got for Monday, I'm so done for today."

"You realize the more you procrastinate, the more homework you'll have tomorrow?" Kaitlyn asked, closing her own textbook, shoving it in her bag. She hardly noticed Freddie's inquisitive glance.

"What the hell does procrastinate mean?" he asked.

Kaitlyn sighed. "Nevermind, Freddie, just don't leave your homework until the last minute. You're a grouch when Mr. Delano gives you detention because you didn't finish your homework."

"No, I'm not!" Freddie whined.

"Whatever you say, Freddie." Kaitlyn slung her backpack over her shoulder. "I'll talk to you later."

"Yep, see you on chat."

"You know that's just another way of procrastinating, right?"

"Huh?"

"I'll see you later."

Kaitlyn left the library, pulling out her cell phone when it buzzed quietly in her pocket. A text from her mother.

_Things are crazy at work. I'll be home late. Love you!_

What a surprise.

Kaitlyn walked home a little slower, knowing she was just going home to an empty house. Sure, there was always the offchance that Tyler was home, but he'd been so testy lately, what with his new involvement with the V's. Besides, that was probably where he was. Especially ever since he met Lisa, the girl who stole her brother's heart, or at least that was how _he_ put it. Kaitlyn hadn't met the girl yet, and even though Tyler just told Kaitlyn about her that morning, you'd think he was going to bring her to the nearest chapel and marry her, for goodness' sake. Maybe that was the reason Ty was so excited about the V's; he had his own, personal V girlfriend.

Gross.

Kaitlyn let herself into the house and realized quickly she wasn't alone.

The clanging around in kitchen was her first clue.

Her initial reaction was that her house was being robbed, but when she heard the colorful language that matched her brother's voice, she relaxed.

Tyler was just in a bad mood. What else was new these days?

Abandoning her bag at the door, Kaitlyn wandered into the kitchen where she found her brother clomping around, muttering under his breath as he made a sandwich as noisily as possible. Kaitlyn sighed, wondering if it would be better if she just hid out in her room until his bad mood passed, but these days, he was _always_ in a bad mood. She refused to be a prisoner just because he was going through some kind of psychotic phase.

"Hey Ty."

"Buzz off!"

_Here we go._

"Geez, chill!" Kaitlyn yelled. "I just thought I'd tell you mom's not gonna be home 'til late. She's busy at work, and-"

"Tell me something I don't know!"

"What the hell is your problem?" Now Kaitlyn was yelling, and she knew if her mother was here, Kaitlyn would be grounded in a second for bad language. If only she could hear the mouth on Tyler, he'd be grounded for life. The thought brought Kaitlyn a slight pang of satisfaction.

Tyler huffed heavily, stopped what he was doing and met his sister's eye. It seemed like his anger passed, for just a second. He looked hurt, genuinely upset.

"It's just...look, I might be getting kicked out of the Peace Ambassador program, alright?" His voice still had an edge to it, but at least he wasn't screaming, so Kaitlyn decided to ask.

"Why? What happened?"

"I was trying to protect the V's! This guy at the peace centre was harrassing the V's, had a picketing sign and everything! You should have heard the stuff he was saying, Kait! Bad-mouthing the V's all over the place. So I hit him!" Tyler explained.

"You hit him?"

"Yeah!"

"Did he hit you first?"

"No, but that doesn't matter! The V's are getting such a bad rap since they've been here, and I was only trying to protect them!" Tyler sighed heavily. "Besides, Lisa was right there, and I thought...I thought she'd think it was cool, you know, me standing up for her and stuff."

"And?"

"She got ticked and left, but not before telling me I might get kicked out!" Tyler slammed his fist down on the counter, his anger returning. "This was my shot at getting involved with Lisa! My shot at helping the V's! Now, they're gonna ditch me!"

Kaitlyn shrugged meekly. "You know, maybe it's not the worst thing in the world, Ty. Maybe it's a sign. Maybe you _should_ stay away from the V's. Maybe they're not all they're cracked up to be. Maybe-"

She was interrupted by a frustrated sigh on Tyler's part.

"You sound just like mom," he said in a condescending tone.

It was like flipping on a switch. The subject of their mother was always a surefire way of causing conflict between the siblings, hands down, every time.

"Don't, Ty, you're just mad because your girlfriend didn't appreciate your macho attitude!" Kaitlyn snapped. "Maybe mom's got it right; she wanted you to stay away from them. She _is_ our mother, maybe you should listen to her!"

"You're just as bad as she is!" Tyler yelled. "What do _you_ have against the V's, anyway? Or are you just copying what precious mommy has to say?"

"Stop it, Ty!" Kaitlyn shrieked. "And maybe you haven't noticed, but the Visitors just showed up one day without warning in spaceships and claiming things we know_ nothing_ about! It's stupid for you to just trust they're all good when you know nothing about them! You're treating them like they're a god! Father Landry says-"

"Oh, don't start preaching at me, Kaiti!" Tyler hissed, grabbing a hold of his messily-made sandwich. "I'm so done!"

With that, he stormed out of the house, making a show of slamming the door behind her.

Kaitlyn felt the tear that trickled down her cheek, hastily brushed it away with the palm of her hand. She couldn't win, she couldn't say anything to her brother anymore. What happened to the days where he would try helping her with her homework, though he never had a clue, where he would offer to drive her to church on his bike, watch television with her in the evenings their mother had to work late? Those days were gone, and Kaitlyn couldn't figure out if it was because he was angry about their father leaving, about their mother working too much, or if the V's had something to do with it.

Or maybe it was everything. Either way, Kaitlyn felt the rock that used to be her family crumbling into pieces all around her

* * *

Erica wondered if this was what the start of an ulcer felt like.

Not only had she nearly lost her job, but she came very close to having her secret of knowing the truth about the V's exposed.

Her boss, Paul, had been on her case all morning regarding the sudden disappearance of Dale. After all, she was the last one to see him before he suddenly dropped off the face of the earth. Turns out that entire mill factory was cleaned right out after the ambush. All the bodies were gone, and there was no sign of Dale.

Of course not. If he wasn't dead, he was back with the V's, now that his cover was blown. It terrified Erica to her very core knowing he could still be alive out there. He knew where she lived, where her children went to school.

She couldn't let herself be paralyzed by fear; she had a war to fight.

Somehow, she'd been able to dodge the suspiscion that she somehow knew about where Dale could be, as if she'd been involved in his disappearance. She'd gotten through the meeting with all the big suits, answered all their questions with ignorance, stuck to the story that she hadn't seen him since earlier that day, managed to clear out her vehicle of all evidence that Dale had been in there the night before. One crisis averted.

But then Jack Landry had come to FBI headquarters.

She could've killed him!

On her way for coffee, right after that stressful meeting with Paul and his associates, Erica spotted him. In a room, an interrogation room.

What the hell?

She had somehow managed to dodge that bullet too. It turned out the priest was visited by the police to question him about a leak they'd gotten about an envelope of pictures. The same pictures he brought to the meeting; pictures of Visitors. Though the priest denied everything at the time, he'd been plagued with a guilty conscience over keeping information from the police, and came straight to the FBI, feeling the need to redeem himself.

Luckily, Erica got to him before anybody else.

He'd been surprised to find out Erica was an FBI agent, but she hardly cared. She reamed him out for coming to the police. Visitors were everywhere, there were probably more V's even within the FBI. They couldn't trust anybody, not anymore!

Jack saw her point, after a lot of arguing back and forth, and Jack was able to somehow talk his way out of there, but that had been too close for comfort.

Somehow, in the middle of all these close calls, she'd managed to find a quick moment to send her daughter a text.

_Things are crazy at work. I'll be home late. Love you!_

She thought back to her conversation with Kaitlyn the night before. Erica wasn't oblivious to the fact that her youngest daughter was crying out for her mother, and it stung. She would have to try harder. But today...well, today she'd almost lost so much; Kaitlyn wouldn't understand, but they'd all dodged an important bullet today.

Erica leaned back at her desk, sighing heavily, thankful for a moment to think. She spotted the framed photograph on her desk. Both of her beautiful children, smiling at her through their glass sanctuary.

A thousand thoughts raced through her mind. It was a mother's job, wasn't it? To worry? Would her babies be okay? Would they be safe? The V's were dangerous, and Tyler was sucked in so far, enamoured with their fancy gadgets and new way of life. What chance did she have of keeping her children away from them if Tyler was already in that deep? Sure, she had asked him to stay away from them, but his promise wasn't convincing. Lately, Erica was feeling as though she was losing her son; would she lose him to the V's?

And then there was Kaitlyn, precocious and clever Kaitlyn. She was such a grounded little girl, and she seemed suspiscious about the V's already. Thank goodness. At least Erica only had to worry about one of her children.

For now. How long before Kaitlyn was sucked into their world?

Or was she already? How would Erica know? How often was she around?

That was going to have to change. Tyler might already be lost in the Visitor's spell, but if Erica had a chance to stop Kaitlyn from following in her brother's footsteps, she would have to take it.

Erica would do anything, _anything_ to keep her children away from those murderous liars.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Kaitlyn couldn't find her biology homework.

Seriously? As if the weekend wasn't bad enough with Tyler's lingering bad attitude, and her mother's absence. Now, she would be joining Freddie in detention for sure.

No, it wasn't fair! She'd spent the time on that homework, she endured her brother's bad mood, and dealt with a lonely weekend. She hardly deserved a night of detention too.

Where was it?

Trying to pull on a pair of socks while she hopped around the room, scanning her surroundings for her purple notebook, she caught sight of Tyler booking it out of the house. Yeah, that was typical; he had become more and more accustomed to taking off early, before he had to deal with their mother. Whatever. Kaitlyn didn't want to speak to him; he was being a jerk.

There it was! Peeking out from under her bed. She grabbed the notebook, breathing out a sigh of relief before shoving it in her backpack and taking off downstairs to the kitchen where she started to pack herself a lunch for school. Tyler was already gone; she could hear his motorcycle puttering down the street. _Bye, Tyler. Have a good day, Tyler. See you after school, Tyler._ Once upon a time, the family used to sit down and eat breakfast together before their mother drove them to school. It seemed a thousand years ago now. Back when she had a father, back when she had a family.

Tears threatened, so she distracted herself with a peanut butter sandwich.

Then she heard footsteps down the stairs, and her mother's voice.

"Yes, Paul, I'm on my way...no, the files are on my desk...under the...no, not there!"

On the phone. With her boss.

It didn't sound like Erica was ending this conversation anytime soon, so Kaitlyn bagged her sandwich, tossed it in her backpack and headed for the front door.

But Erica, on her way to the kitchen, caught Kaitlyn's eye and held up a finger, flagging her down.

Kaitlyn sighed. That was a first. Normally, Erica hardly noticed when her kids left in the morning. She was always so busy with work. It must be important if she wanted Kaiti to wait.

"Yeah Paul, I'll be in within the next 15 minutes." Erica sighed heavily. "I gotta go, Paul, I gotta talk to my kid. See you at work."

Before she even waited for a response, Erica hung up.

"Sorry, baby, I know you gotta get going pretty soon, but I wanted to talk to you quick first," she said, taking a seat on one of the kitchen stools. Kaitlyn stayed standing, leaning over the high counter.

"About what?" Kaitlyn wanted to know. It had to be important, that much she could sense. Her mother wasn't one to engage in small talk, at least not in the morning, not when she had to be at work in fifteen minutes.

"I'm curious about your thoughts on the Visitors," Erica said, straight to the point. "What do you think about them?"

Kaitlyn couldn't help but smile a little.

"You mean, am I as obsessed about them as Tyler is?"

Erica laughed a little. "Kaiti, you are too smart for your own good. I can't pull anything over your eyes."

Kaitlyn shrugged with a meek grin.

"I don't know, mom, they're from outer space. Sure, it's interesting, but I think it's a little weird, and they're a little too nice. It's not natural."

"Niceness isn't always a bad thing, Kaiti." Erica pointed out.

"Maybe, but come on. Nobody, not even aliens, just decide to give things away without wanting something in return," Kaitlyn rebuttled.

Erica sighed. "Well, you could be right. After all, we don't know a lot about them." _Except that they've been infiltrating our planet for years, and they're murderers, and liars, and reptiles,_ Erica thought. "I just want you two to be careful. It's like I taught you when you were little, don't talk to strangers."

"Don't worry, mom. I'm not interested in the V's. Anything is bad news when people start worshipping it instead of God," Kaitlyn replied.

"Can't argue with that."

"It just sucks, mom. I mean, hardly anybody even _goes_ to that church to begin with, but since the Visitors came, there's barely anybody there. Even Freddie's starting to get all weird; he's even talking about wanting to join the Peace Ambassador program. He's only _13_!" Kaitlyn huffed.

"I'm sure Freddie will come around in his own time. He's probably just fascinated by all the new things that come along with the V's. He's not alone in that. Speaking of which, where's Ty this morning?" Erica looked around for evidence of her eldest.

Kaitlyn sighed. "He already left. I saw him take off about fifteen minutes ago."

"Shoot," Erica murmured. "I was hoping to get a chance to talk to him."

"Yeah." Kaitlyn paused. "Mom?"

"Yeah babe?"

"I was just wondering if-"

The phone interrupted them.

"Hold on, Mouse." Erica answered the phone and listened. It was probably her boss. Erica's face dropped and she sighed loudly.

"Oh man, okay, I'll be right there!" She pinched her phone shut.

"Sorry, Kaiti, I gotta run. There's a situation at the Peace Ambassador Center, and I have to be there." Erica grabbed her jacket, her bag. "Get yourself to school and be good. I'll see you later!"

Without even so much as a kiss on the head, Erica flew out the front door.

Leaving Kaitlyn alone.

Again.

"...just wondering if we could all see a movie this weekend. As a family." She said to the empty walls.

But who was she kidding? This family was in shambles. She could blame Tyler, she could blame her father, she could blame her mother, she could blame the Visitors, but really, was it any one person's fault?

She didn't know, but what she did know was this: a year ago, before the divorce, her mother only worked eight hours a day, her father cooked them all spaghetti every Thursday night, and Tyler wasn't a jerk. Those were the days she missed, but she had a hunch those were the days she would also never get back.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Erica longed for her bed.

Once she arrived at the Peace Ambassador Center, her boss Paul quickly filled her in on the situation. A death threat had been made against the V's, and the FBI were anticipating an assasination attempt on Anna, the V's queen. Of course, the FBI ensured Anna was safe on her ship, but they still had to be on the lookout; the FBI knew as well as anybody else that an assassin would kill anybody to make a point.

Of course, Erica had mixed feelings about her role in all of this. It was her job, as an FBI agent to protect the citizens of this country, protect _anyone_ in danger, but she knew the truth about these liars called the Visitors. They were here for reasons unknown, but it wasn't for peace, that much Erica was _positive_ about. She felt odd, protecting them. But still, it was her job, and besides, she couldn't draw any attention to herself.

As Erica canvased the Peace Ambassador Center for any signs of suspiscious activity, she couldn't help but feel on guard. After all, it was the Visitors who were the enemy, not the humans. If anybody was attempting an assasination, those people might be people like her, people who knew the truth about the Visitors, people who knew the dangers they really held.

No wonder she felt torn.

But still, she was an FBI agent, and the V's were watching her. If they suspected her, she could be in danger, or worse, her children.

As she turned a corner, she spotted an unconscious guard on the ground.

His uniform was gone.

The assassin was disguised as a guard.

So she began her search.

Of course, she called it in, and all the FBI agents on site were scoping out the place for a suspect in uniform, but that meant anybody could be the assassin.

It wasn't until she spotted a man, only feet away from her, garbed in Visitor attire, reach into his pocket and discreetly pull out a gun that Erica sprung into action.

Just as the assassin was taking aim at Marcus, Anna's right-hand man, Erica tackled him from behind, pinning him to the ground and kicking his gun out of his hand while he struggled madly, rambling on about how he was doing the right thing, the Visitors were bad news.

_Tell me something I don't know,_ Erica thought bitterly as she cuffed the assassin.

And as if things weren't stressful enough, it got even worse when a group of Visitor guards came to collect the assassin. It turned out the V's wanted to interrogate the suspect, and they didn't trust the FBI to do the job correctly, so Erica had to watch with tight lips as the assassin was carted away - a knot formed in Erica's stomach just thinking about what these crazy reptiles were planning on doing to this man.

No, those kinds of things were better not to think about.

Well, at least her shift was finally over. What a day it had been!

* * *

"But Freddie, you _never_ miss mass. I thought you'd be there, like always, but I had to sit by myself!" Kaitlyn complained over the phone as she sat propped up in bed, pajama-clad and watching her feet as she swayed them back and forth.

"Yeah I know, I just didn't really feel like going, sorry Kaiti," Freddie replied casually, as though it wasn't a big deal.

"Well, I'm sure God will forgive you," Kaitlyn added with a bit of a giggle.

"Sure," Freddie said distractedly. Weird. He wasn't acting like himself.

Kaitlyn decided to change the subject. Maybe he was feeling guilty about skipping out on church.

"Hey Freddie, what did you think of Mr. Delano's tie today?" she asked.

Freddie finally laughed.

"He needs to hire a personal assistant to buy him a new wardrobe," he replied. "I know he thinks he's being cool, wearing cartoon characters on his ties, but seriously. He's gotta be more than 50!"

Kaitlyn giggled and continued to listen to her best friend ramble on about Mr. Delano's collection of ties until she heard the front door downstairs. She quickly checked the time; wow, it was early - she wasn't expecting her brother _or_ her mother home for a couple of hours yet.

"Freddie, I gotta go. Someone's home," Kaitlyn announced.

"But it's only nine," Freddie said curiously.

"I know. I'll talk to you later."

Kaitlyn hung up and swung her feet over her bed as she heard the stairs creaking.

Then she heard voices.

There was Tyler's voice, and...

A girl's voice.

So Tyler was breaking the rules. Their mother had insisted from the time Tyler turned 13 that they weren't allowed to have members of the opposite sex over for visits if Erica wasn't around. This frustrated the hell out of Kaitlyn, whose best friend was a boy, and Erica was never home anyway. Most of the time, Kaitlyn had to hang out at Freddie's, or at the library.

"Tyler, are you sure it's okay we're here? I don't want to intrude," the girl said in a gentle voice.

"Nah, don't worry, Lisa. Nobody's even home. My mom's never around, and my sister's at church," Tyler replied.

Showed how much he paid attention. Mass was over at eight.

Busted. Kaitlyn couldn't help but feel a slight smile cross her lips. For all the times he'd been a jerk to her these last few days, part of Kaitlyn just couldn't wait to rat him out.

As Tyler and his new girlfriend passed her bedroom, hands intertwined and completely oblivious to her presence, Kaitlyn couldn't help herself.

"Hey Ty!" she called.

Silence.

Tyler appeared in the doorway, his cheeks turning a slight shade of pink. Kaitlyn barely noticed he was wearing his Peace Ambassador uniform. So he really _hadn't_ expected anyone to be home.

"You're home?" he asked sheepishly.

"Obviously."

Tyler sighed loudly.

"Kait, listen, I-"

And then Lisa appeared in the doorway, donning the same uniform as Tyler. She was pretty, nothing like Kaitlyn. Lisa had silk blonde hair, deep blue eyes and perfect skin. Kaitlyn already felt awkward just looking at her. Kaitlyn would never be _that_ pretty. She unconsciously took off her glasses, and wished like mad her freckles would disappear.

"Tyler, is this your sister?" Lisa stepped into Kaitlyn's room, uninvited. "Hi Kaitlyn, my name is Lisa." She reached out her hand, and Kaitlyn took it to be polite, but suddenly felt very shy.

"Hi," Kaitlyn replied.

"You have a very nice room," Lisa commented, looking around. "Purple is such a calming color. Did you decorate it yourself?"

Her teeth were perfectly straight. Kaitlyn bet _she_ never had to have braces.

"No, my mother did," Kaitlyn explained. "When I was ten."

"It's very nice." Lisa flashed her winning smile. "It was lovely meeting you, Kaitlyn. Tyler's told me so many wonderful things about you."

Kaitlyn glanced at Tyler, lifting an eyebrow. He shrugged awkwardly.

"Anyway, my room's this way, Lisa." Tyler motioned his girlfriend out of the room. She smiled once more at Kaitlyn before she disappeared down the hall. Tyler held back, his eyes pleading at Kaitlyn.

"Don't even give me that look, Tyler!" Kaitlyn chastized. "Mom's gonna _kill_ you!"

"Come on, Kait, just don't tell her!"

"Ty!" Kaitlyn whined. "I'm so _sick_ of keeping your dirty little secrets! It's not right! You and mom are the ones who are having all the issues. Not me! Mom _trusts_ me, but if she ever found out I was lying to her about you all the time, I'd lose that, and that's not fair! It's bad enough you and mom are having problems, but why should I?"

Tyler considered her for a moment before peeking his head down the hall where Lisa had disappeared into his room. He suddenly seemed impatient.

"You know, lying by omission isn't _really_ lying, Kaiti." Tyler flashed the fakest grin Kaitlyn had ever seen. "Just tell mom I got home not long after you. That's not a lie."

Kaitlyn glared at him.

"Some big brother _you_ are." She spat. "Teaching me wrong morals."

Tyler shrugged. "Yeah, well, you're getting the good kind at church anyway."

"Way to shirk your way out of your brotherly responsibilities."

"Look, Kaiti, I got a hot girl waiting for me in my room, can you _please_ just cut me some slack this one time? I swear, I'll-"

"Make me some more empty promises? Gee, I dunno, Ty, I've already lost track of all the money you owe me, rides you owe me, chores you owe me. What is it this time?" Kaitlyn was less than impressed.

Tyler sighed heavily. "Okay, then _tell_ me what you want."

"Alright, fine, you know what I want?" Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow. "I want you to tell mom you forged her signature, and that you're a Peace Ambassador."

"Kaitlyn!"

"Would you rather tell her that, or have me tell her you've been bringing a hot blonde up to your bedroom when she's not home?"

"Alright, I'll tell her about the Peace Ambassador Program."

"Good." Kaitlyn flashed the smuggest smile in the world. Yes, she felt good; for once, she'd been the one in control, the one to manipulate an outcome. It was a new feeling, usually it was Tyler who called the shots.

As Tyler took off and shut his bedroom door, Kaitlyn breathed out and leaned back against her pillows. Even though she was able to convince Tyler to be honest about his involvement with the V's, it still cost Kaitlyn. She would have to lie to her mother once again.

So the cycle continued.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

Three days had passed, and Tyler was taking crazy advantage of Kaitlyn's promise not to tell their mother about Lisa's presence at their house. Yes, Tyler had kept his end of the bargain and told his mom about the Peace Ambassador program; that was a big blowout that Kaitlyn locked herself in her room for, but at least that was out in the open. But now, Tyler was bringing Lisa home with him every night, making sure she left before Erica came home.

That wasn't part of the deal, but after being forced to hear the psychotic blowout between Tyler and Erica the night Tyler told her about the Peace Ambassador program, the last thing she wanted was to cause a greater conflict. Yes, she knew he was breaking the rules, and he knew it too, but Kaitlyn was done with being the middle man. She was just going to live her life and pretend she didn't care that he was spending far too much time with Lisa, and never any with her anymore. By now, she reasoned, she should be used to being alone.

Now, it was Thursday evening, and Kaitlyn was watching the news online in her room. Her mother was still at work, and Tyler was busy with Lisa in his room. What they were doing, Kaitlyn didn't even want to think about, but at least the door was closed. Whatever.

Chad Dekker was interviewing a Mary Faulkner, the same woman he had interviewed the day before. Kaitlyn had watched that newsflash too. Yesterday, the grieving woman was bashing the V's something fierce on the news, and it seemed she had every right to be ticked. Her husband was killed in a fighter jet that crashed the day the Visitors arrived. Apparently the wavelengths from the Visitor ship interferred with all surrounding flying objects, and there were many crashes in the area. Mary Faulkner's husband was dead, and she blamed the Visitors. Kaitlyn had listened to her yesterday with understanding and agreeance; yes, the woman _should_ be upset. After all, the Visitors had to own up to any lives they might have cost.

But tonight, Chad was interviewing the same woman, at least she _looked_ like the same woman. But what she was saying was completely contradicting what she had said yesterday.

"I know what I said yesterday. I was terribly upset. I miss my husband, but I had no right to lash out at the Visitors. I've thought about the things I've said, and I'm sorry. I've had a change of heart; the Visitors truly _are_ about peace, and they've been helping me deal with the death of my husband. I'm thankful for the Visitors. Anna is a beautiful woman, inside and out, and their presence on our planet is going to be a blessing for everyone," Faulkner told a listening Chad Dekker.

_What?_

Kaitlyn backed up the video and played it again to make sure she heard her right. This woman, the _same_ woman who had publically bashed the Visitors and condemned them on all kinds of levels, was now glowing at the camera with a smile and a positive thing to say.

What happened?

Kaitlyn wasn't stupid. She may be only 13 years old, but she wasn't stupid. Nobody who was that upset about something changed their mind just like that. No, something had happened between yesterday's news and today's.

Kaitlyn leaned back and pondered; what was the real deal behind the V's, anyway? They'd been here for a length of time now, and they still hadn't really talked about what their goals were, their purposes, the point. Were they planning on sticking around forever? And what was the deal with Mary Faulkner? Maybe the Visitors weren't as great as they made themselves out to be. Jack Landry had been trying to say that for a few masses now, but Kaitlyn, always objective, remained suspiscious. But _now_, now she truly did wonder what the V's were capable of. Was it possible they had _brainwashed_ Mary Faulkner into changing her mind in order to keep a positive image of themselves in the media? The Visitors claimed they had invented all kinds of advanced technology; who was to say they didn't have the resources to brainwash human beings?

Kaitlyn's stomach dropped; she thought of Tyler in the next room with Lisa. Lisa was a V, and he was in there with her, alone, the door closed. Kaitlyn shuddered. No, she didn't even want to _think_ about what was going on behind that door, brainwashing or not.

Sighing, she decided to call Freddie. Maybe he could give her some interesting theories on Mary Faulkner.

But he wasn't home. Freddie's dad informed her his only son was invited to tour the mother ship with his buddies from school, and he wouldn't be home until late.

Kaitlyn felt a stab of jealousy. She and Freddie were best friends; why wouldn't he want to invite her? Not that she was interested in touring the mother ship _anyway_, but that wasn't the point.

Loneliness dug its way in, and Kaitlyn dialed her mother's cell number, knowing she was at work, but not caring.

On the fourth ring, Erica answered. "Hello?"

"Hi, mom."

"Hey, baby!" Erica said, for once not sounding distracted. "You okay?"

Kaitlyn's voice must have given her away.

"I don't know." She sighed. "When are you coming home?"

"You know what, Mouse, I just have a few things left to tie up here, so I'll be home in about half an hour, how does that sound?" Erica asked. A smile crossed Kaitlyn's lips; she hadn't expected that, but it was definitely good news, especially tonight.

"Awesome," Kaitlyn replied. "See you soon."

She hung up the phone, considering for a brief second knocking on Tyler's door to warn him that their mother was on their way.

Then, she changed her mind. Yes, it might mean a blow-out, yes, it might mean tension, but Kaitlyn was tired of eggshells and secrets. Tyler had to own up to his own crap, and Kaitlyn was tired of being the middle man.

So why did she feel so guilty?

* * *

Half an hour later, just like clockwork, the front door downstairs opened. Kaitlyn, lounging in bed reading her newest book, looked up and realized their mother was home.

Lisa hadn't left yet.

Kaitlyn's heart started to race.

Tyler must have heard the front door because Kaitlyn heard his bedroom door slam open, and a panicked Tyler telling Lisa to wait in his room and keep quiet. Then, he thundered down the hall, passing Kaitlyn's room with a panicked look on his face, and no shirt. Kaitlyn couldn't help herself.

"You are _so_ busted!" she called.

"Shut up!" her brother retorted.

"Hey guys!" Erica called. She was already up the stairs.

"Hey mom," Tyler replied, awkwardly. Erica peeked her head in at Kaitlyn and Tyler glared daggers at his sisters over his mom's shoulder.

"Hey Kaiti." Erica smiled. Kaitlyn could only smile back. Now that Erica was here, _actually_ here, she wished she could go back in time and take it back, tell Tyler to bring Lisa home. As much as she wanted Tyler to be a man and be responsible, she didn't want there to be any more fights. _Damn it, Kaitlyn, what were you thinking?_

"Why are you out here, Ty?" Erica peered past her son. "Why's your door closed?"

Kaitlyn's heart fluttered. She immediately buried her nose back in her book, bit her lip.

"Uh." Tyler was a terrible liar when he was nervous. "I was just, you know, visiting Kaitlyn."

Kaitlyn closed her eyes. _You idiot. If you're gonna lie, come up with something realistic!_

Erica clued in; she wasn't stupid either. She glanced in at Kaitlyn, as though hoping her little truth-teller would break, and spill the beans.

But Kaitlyn couldn't. No, she couldn't even _look_ at her mother, at her brother. Her heart thudded out of control, hating the pressure of being pitted in the middle of their constant conflicts.

So Erica took charge, and headed for Tyler's room, Tyler hot on her trail.

"Mom, what are -"

"What are you hiding in here, Ty?"

"Nothing, why would I-"

"Well, if you've got nothing to hide, then you won't mind if I-"

She opened the door.

Kaitlyn held her breath, as she heard her mother stammer.

"Um, okay, I-"

"You must be Mrs. Evans," Lisa's voice chimed from Tyler's room.

But Erica didn't respond. She only shut the door, and spoke in hushed whispers to Tyler. Kaitlyn leaned forward, listening intently.

"I will talk to you about this later, Ty. Right now, I want you to go in there, tell your girlfriend to put on some clothes, and take her home."

"But mom-"

"Now's not a good time to pick a fight with me, Tyler Evans, I'm _mad_. Bring her home, we'll talk later." Erica's word was final.

While Erica stood guard outside Tyler's bedroom, waiting for Lisa to get dressed and Tyler to take her home, Kaitlyn found her way downstairs unnoticed; it wasn't like either of them remembered she was around, not right now. Besides, Kaitlyn was thirsty.

As she poured herself a glass of juice, she caught sight of Tyler and Lisa coming down the stairs in absolute silence before heading out the front door. Kaitlyn sighed. Maybe she would go to bed early; she hardly wanted to be awake when Tyler got home later.

She chugged her juice quickly and made her way through the foyer back to the stairs. Her mother was just coming down the stairs. Kaitlyn met her mother's eyes, forced a smile, and went to run up the stairs.

"Just a sec, Kait," Erica said.

Kaitlyn's stomach dropped as she froze halfway up the stairs. She turned and faced her mother, who stared at her youngest with sad eyes.

"Is it just me, or were my rules about girlfriends and boyfriends coming over when I'm not home not clear enough?" It seemed like Erica was musing more to herself than anything, and Kaitlyn knew she wasn't in trouble for any reason, so she lowered herself to the step and pulled her hair back into a messy ponytail as she answered.

"Maybe he wasn't listening when you set them." She tried.

Erica raised an eyebrow.

Kaitlyn sighed. "No, your rules were clear. If not the first time, then the next 99 times you mentioned it."

Even Erica had to laugh at that. She took the stairs and parked herself right next to her daughter, letting out a sigh.

"I don't know what to do with that boy, Kaiti," Erica said. "I don't make rules to be a control-freak, I make them to keep you guys safe. You know that, right baby?"

"Sure, mom."

"I know it's hard on you two, with your father gone, and I know I work a lot, but..." Erica seemed so distraught, Kaitlyn had to look away. "I mean, _really_, Tyler has more sense than that, doesn't he? He knows better than to bring a girl home, have her half naked in his room!"

"Gross."

Erica smiled lightly, and turned to look at her daughter.

"Kaiti?" She had that look in her eye. Kaitlyn's stomach sank.

"Mmm?"

"Sweetheart," Erica started. "When I called earlier, did you know she was here?"

Kaitlyn stared at the step, picked at a loose thread on her sock, nodded slightly.

"Why didn't you say something then?" Erica wanted to know.

Kaitlyn looked up and faced her mother.

"What, and be a snitch?" She sighed. "Mom, Ty's been weird since the V's came, not that he wasn't before, but he's kinda cranky."

"You could say that."

"He gets mad so easily; I didn't want to snitch on him and have him be mad at me again. I...I hate it when he's mad at me." Kaitlyn paused. "Besides, it could have been worse. I could have told _him_ you were on your way home and he would have had her out of here before you got here."

Kaitlyn crossed her arms and stared at the floor. Erica peeked sideways and when she couldn't get her little girl to look at her, she nudged her.

"Kait," she started. "I get the feeling there's more going on with you than you're telling me."

Kaitlyn's heart seized. What was she supposed to say? _Yes, mom, there's more going on! I'm tired of being in the middle! I'm tired of doing everything I can to keep this family together when it's being torn apart! I'm tired of you never being home, I'm tired of Tyler being a jerk, I'm tired of the V's, I miss you, I miss Tyler, I miss Freddie, I miss the way life was before dad left!_

Kaitlyn took a breath and finally met her mother's eyes.

"I'm fine, mom," she said. "It's Tyler you have to worry about."

And with that, Kaitlyn retired to her room for the night.

* * *

Lisa walked through the silent corridors on the V mothership, clad in uniform and straight-faced. Tyler had just dropped her off at the loading dock, and he was speechless. Lisa gathered he was pretty upset about his mother discovering Lisa's presence in his mother's absence. Tyler mentioned to her on their drive to the mothership that his mother had rules against that kind of thing. Lisa didn't understand; if Lisa being there was against the rules, then why hadn't Kaitlyn said anything, blown their cover?

"She doesn't like fighting," Tyler explained. "I guess I take that for granted, sometimes. I get her to lie for me all the time, and she does it, because she doesn't like the fighting."

Lisa got the impression that Tyler almost felt guilty by this. Still, he didn't have a lot to say that evening, and Lisa made her up to her home, the mothership, with information she knew was valuable.

She was accepted into the throneroom, as it was called for all intensive purposes. There was Anna, confidant and queen-like, staring out at the city of New York from their place in the sky. Lisa joined the other woman, who acknowledged her presence with a curt nod.

"Tyler?" Anna inquired.

"He dropped me off, and went back home." Lisa breathed in. "I suspect his mother will be lecturing him. She was less than pleased with my presence in their home this evening."

"Your work with Tyler is too important to be halted because of his mother. You will simply have to find other means of spending time with him." Anna turned to the younger. "Tyler is very important to our race, Lisa. The future of our planet lies in your hands."

Lisa gave a simple nod, and then began to speak.

"Tyler is very attached to his family." She said simply. "He and his mother are having conflicts right now, but he still has strong feelings toward her...He also has a sister."

Anna seemed interested. "A sister? Older or younger?"

"Younger, she is about 13." Lisa continued. "Tyler is very close with her. He is very protective of her and speaks well of her, for the most part."

Anna quietly contemplated this new bit of information as she stared out at New York.

"Then the girl might be important," Anna concluded before turning to Lisa with a smile at last. "You're doing an excellent job, Lisa."

Lisa smiled, surprised at the compliment.

"Thank you, Mother."

* * *

"Hi, Jack," Erica said into the phone when Father Jack Landry finally answered the phone. She made sure to keep her voice down; Kaitlyn was long asleep, but Tyler was probably still moping about in his room. He begged Erica to not yell at him or lecture him about Lisa tonight, using Kaitlyn as his excuse.

"I don't want to wake her."

Well, Erica didn't want to wake her either; there was something going in with that girl, something that was deeply bothering her. The last thing she wanted was to add to it by keeping her awake. She would have to make an effort to get through to her daughter. She agreed with Tyler that they would talk in the morning, but made it clear he wasn't anywhere _near_ being off the hook for this.

Now alone in the kitchen, she decided she needed to call Jack and tell him about what had happened the day before, with the near-assasination and the Visitors taking control. Jack listened intently and when Erica was finished, she was surprised when Jack's next comment had nothing to do with the Visitors.

"You sound conflicted, Erica," Jack said. "Everything alright?"

"What, you mean besides killer V's?"

"Yeah, besides that."

Erica cradled her head with her free hand.

"No, it's fine, I'm just having trouble with my kids," she admitted quietly.

"Kids, plural?" Jack laughed a little. "I thought Kaitlyn never did anything wrong."

Erica had to smile.

"She hasn't done anything wrong, but I think she's upset about stuff and she won't talk to me." She sighed. "Tyler, on the other hand, well, he just keeps on fighting me on stuff."

"It'll be okay, Erica," Jack said softly. "Things will start looking up."

Erica wanted to believe that, she really did. She wanted her family to be restored, but ever since Joe took off, she wondered if that was a real possibility.

"Anyway," Erica said, wanting to change the subject. "Do you have any news for me?"

"Yeah," Jack replied. "You know that guy, Georgie? The one who led that first meeting we ever went to the night we met? Well, I met up with him and he's agreed to join us in our fight against the V's, and better than that, he's brought a friend along with him. His name's Ryan."

Erica couldn't help but smile.

"That's great, Jack." Erica paused. "The more people we have on our side, the better chance we have of exposing the Visitors for who they really are, because I'll tell you, Jack. I will do everything in my power to protect my children, and if the Visitors are dangerous, then I have to do _something._"


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

"Is Freddie home?" Kaitlyn asked when Freddie's dad answered the phone. It was the next morning, and Kaitlyn was still feeling a little miffed at Freddie's decision to tour the mothership instead of listening to her theories on the V's intentions, but now she was hoping she would be able to convince him to go with her to that evening's Bible study. She was eager to get out of the house anyway; Tyler was grounded, so he'd be sulking around all night since he couldn't see Lisa. Not that he didn't put up a fight; her mother cornered Tyler early that morning and they had their little 'talk', if that was what you wanted to call it. It wasn't all bad, but Tyler was hardly in the mood to talk about safe sex with his mother, and Kaitlyn couldn't say she really blamed him. She herself shut her bedroom door and did homework.

"Hello?" Freddie finally answered.

"Hey man," Kaitlyn replied, fiddling with her hair. "Where were you last night?" As if she didn't know.

"Oh hey Kaiti," Freddie said distractedly. "Yeah, my dad said you called. I was up on the mothership."

"Well, la-dee-dah!" Kaitlyn scoffed.

"Whatever, you would have loved it!"

"Well, thanks for the invite."

"Come on, you know Bret and Corey never invite me anywhere! I had to go with them." Freddie sighed. "Besides, it was _sooo_ cool."

So Freddie launched into a whole step-by-step commentary on his night on the mothership, and all the techonology he saw, the V's he met, the food he ate. Kaitlyn rolled her eyes, stifling a yawn.

"Well, cool, glad you had fun." She lied. "Anyway, you're coming tonight, right?"

"Uh..." Freddie sighed. "Kaiti, I don't think I'm gonna go back to church."

Kaitlyn literally felt her stomach turn to ice. Of all the excuses she imagined Freddie coming up with, _this_ was the last thing she expected.

"What do you mean you're not gonna go back?" Kaitlyn swallowed. "Like, ever?"

Freddie's sigh was monstrous.

"It's just...I've been doing a lot of thinking." He paused. "Don't you ever wonder why we believe in a God who doesn't show up?"

"Doesn't show up? Freddie, that's insane! He shows up everywhere. I mean, He heals the sick, He-"

"Yeah, well the V's do that too, don't they?" Freddie raised his voice a little. "So, where's God?"

It was like a rock lodged itself in Kaitlyn's throat. She would _not_ cry, but she couldn't help feel the tingling behind her eyes. Her friend, her _best_ friend, was renouncing his faith, the same faith that led Kaitlyn to believe in God.

"Freddie, you don't mean this, you're just...you're just too caught up in the V's right now," Kaitlyn pointed out.

"Or maybe you're too caught up in God."

"Since when is that a bad thing?"

"Since when are the V's a bad thing?"

"Since you made them your new god!" Kaitlyn yelled out, unable to control herself. She hated yelling at her best friend, but he was delusional. This wasn't like him. How could she make him see that?

Apparently, she couldn't. He told her he had to go, and he hung up.

Kaitlyn took a deep breath, trying to compose herself before heading downstairs. Tyler was parked in front of the TV, probably his new home until his punishment was over. Kaitlyn crossed the room, stealing a glance at the TV. Of course; there was Anna, blabbing on about something.

"What now?" Kaitlyn asked bitterly, with nothing better to do than collapse in the armchair.

"The V's are offering vitamin injections. Their technology is awesome! This injection will help your whole immune system! They say you'll never get sick again." Tyler shrugged. "Except for the flu. So, Anna still thinks everyone should get their flu shot."

Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow.

"Well, then I guess it's a good thing I'm getting my flu shot tomorrow," she said sarcastically. "Seriously? The V's can cure everything but the flu? I don't see why people are so amazed by these people."

"Oh, what's your problem?" Tyler asked with attitude. Kaitlyn ignored him; the last thing she felt like was a screaming match with her brother. She was already close to tears because of Freddie. One angsty word from her brother, and the floodgates would open. No, not today. She simply focused her gaze on the television, without really seeing the images.

Erica rushed into the room, startling Kaitlyn, who didn't even realize their mother was still home.

"Hey guys, I'm heading to work," Erica said. Kaitlyn sighed, _of course!_

"Kaitlyn, you're going to church tonight, aren't you?" Erica asked, sitting at the edge of the coffee table to talk to her kids. Kaitlyn nodded without meeting her mother's gaze.

"With Freddie?" Erica inquired.

Kaitlyn shook her head. "No, he's not coming."

"Why not?" Erica wanted to know.

"He's busy," Kaitlyn lied, eyes still glued to the television.

"Honey, I don't want you walking home by yourself tonight," Erica said after a brief pause. This caught Kaitlyn's attention.

"Why not?"

"Because you're only 13 years old, kiddo!" Erica turned to Tyler. "Can you please pick up your sister from the church at nine?"

Tyler huffed.

"Come on, mom," he whined. Erica raised an eyebrow.

"You're grounded, remember?" She smiled. "Your schedule's wide open. Thank you in advance for your cooperation."

Tyler only rolled his eyes in response.

"Speaking of schedule, Tyler, don't you have an appointment with Valerie this morning?" Erica glanced at her watch. Kaitlyn felt her stomach knot; Valerie was Tyler's therapist, and Kaitlyn hated when it came up. Tyler had been reluctant about therapy at first, but opened up to the idea eventually, but their mother was still trying to change Kaitlyn's mind about it. But Kaitlyn was set; she didn't need therapy. Families fell apart every day, not everybody had the money to pay a shrink to ask "how do you feel about that?"

Tyler turned off the TV and took off without a word. In the silence, Erica turned to her daughter, and Kaitlyn could predict the words before her mother even said them.

"Kaiti, maybe-"

"I don't need therapy, mom, so please don't even bring it up." Kaitlyn plopped her head down on the arm of the chair. She was so exhausted and upset about Freddie, about Tyler; she did _not_ want to have this conversation.

"Honey, there's no shame in talking to somebody about stuff." Erica smiled at her youngest. "Divorce isn't easy, and-"

"Mom, Ty's the one with psychological problems, not me." Kaitlyn sighed. "I'm fine."

_Except for the fact that I'm a pathological liar, now._

Erica rested her hand on her daughter's head, her daughter who wouldn't even look up. Erica could see something was up.

"What's the matter, baby?" Erica wanted to know. "This is more than me bringing up therapy."

Kaitlyn sighed. She could pretend, again, that she was fine, but Tyler wasn't here, and her mother was, and the best part was, she didn't seem in a rush to get to work. For a moment, she seemed willing to be late if it meant being there for Kaitlyn.

So Kaitlyn reached out.

She began to cry, and she let her mother hold her as she told her the whole story about Freddie, her only friend, her _best_ friend, how he had denounced his faith, and maybe even their friendship. What would she do, oh, what would she _do_ without Freddie, her best friend in the whole world? Erica didn't have any consoling advice or words of wisdom, but she held her daughter close, let her cry until she was all cried out, told her it would be okay, and Kaitlyn, for a few moments, could forget about the V's, and about Freddie, because right now, she had her mother's attention, and that was all that mattered, for now.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

Erica didn't go to work like she told her kids; no, she went to the small basement she, Jack and the two new members of their resistance, Georgie and Ryan, were using to meet up. Truth be told, Erica had hesitated about Ryan's involvement at first. Turns out he was a Visitor, reptile skin and all! But he turned against the Visitors when Anna became queen. It seemed he was truly on their side, but Erica had a hard time trusting anybody these days.

She also hated leaving Kaitlyn home by herself; the poor girl was devastated about Freddie, but Erica had to attend this meeting. Besides, it was things like Freddie's new fanaticism that Erica was fighting against. The V's were positioning themselves as gods, as healers, brain-washing everybody. It was hard enough that her own son was sucked into the V's circle, now that he was a peace ambassador. She had to tread carefully; her own son could be a pawn in this game. In fact, he was the reason she hadn't told her children about the resistance. Kaitlyn wasn't buying into the Visitors, but she and Tyler were close, and one slip-up on her daughter's part, and Anna herself could find out about their small team. No, she was on her own, but at least she had the three men on her side.

She arrived in the basement to find Jack, Ryan and Georgie already waiting for her. They were already talking about the Visitors.

"Erica," they greeted.

"Sorry I'm late." Erica offered a smile with a shrug. "Kids."

The three accepted her excuse without hesitation.

"Ryan was just telling us about these new vitamin injections Anna's been raving about," Georgie filled her in. Erica raised an eyebrow.

"What, these new shots people are lining up for to boost their immune system?" she inquired.

"Well, at least that's what they're telling people," Ryan said.

"Are you saying that shot has nothing to do with vitamins?"

"I can't be sure, but..." Ryan sighed. "A few years back, there was a Visitor cell of scientists working on a vaccine they had plans for. Plans...to destroy all of humanity."

Erica's stomach sank. "Wait! You're saying whoever gets that vitamin supplement from the Visitors is going to die?"

"I don't know for sure, but I don't think it's a vitamin supplement, that's for sure." Ryan glanced at their team. "I figured out where the Visitors are keeping their shipment of vaccine. They're scheduled to arrive at the Visitors' Healing Centres in the morning. Unless...unless we do something about it."

Erica raised her eyebrows at the men, who didn't look the least bit surprised.

"I'm guessing that means you already have a plan that you all decided on before I got here?"

Their sheepish grins gave them away.

* * *

The next thing Erica knew, she and the three men were sneaking undetected into an old warehouse where Ryan had figured out the shipment of vaccines was being held until their scheduled departure the next day. Erica felt sick to her stomach as she held her gun at the ready, in case they had been followed, or in case some Visitor was keeping guard and decided to cause problems.

Ryan quickly found a computer program that would initiate a failsafe program that would destroy the entire building, leaving the vaccines destroyed, and possibly thousands of lives safed.

As Erica stood guard with Georgie and Jack, she couldn't help but think of what could have happened. Kaitlyn's flu shot was scheduled for the next day; what would have happened if...no, she couldn't think that way! It _hadn't_ happened that way! Ryan came through for them; they'd caught the V's before they got away with it.

Ryan was working hard at the computer screen, trying to figure out the passwords and initiating the destruction sequences. Erica wished he would just hurry up; they were sitting ducks waiting-

Before she could even finish her thought, a group of Visitors busted through the doors and started shooting.

"Take cover!" Erica ordered, as she, Georgie, Jack and Ryan ducked and rolled. Shots fired out, rang past metal poles. Ryan bravely scurried behind a pile of drum cans, sneaking up behind one of the assassins, jumping him from behind and twisting his neck. That got the other's attention, and Erica, Georgie and Jack bust out and started fighting.

"Do it, Ryan!" Erica screamed as she shot a Visitor, watching him crumble to the ground, as Georgie headbutted the other guy, pinning him to the ground, shaking his wrist until the gun fell from his hand. Erica fired another shot in his knee, ignoring the ear-shattering screams and curses.

Erica was too busy fighting off the Visitors that seemed to multiple with every turn of the head to realize what Ryan was doing, but just as her adrenaline was beginning to wear out with all the shots she was firing, Ryan finally shouted out, "It's done, get out of here! 20 seconds 'til it blows!"

Erica delivered a final blow to a Visitor and bolted toward the nearest exit, glancing around to make sure everyone was accounted for. There was Jack, Georgie, and Ryan. As they ran, a few straggling Visitors chased after them, and Erica turned and shot, watching each of them stumble in turn. No, they couldn't be followed; their identities had to be a secret. She had a family to protect.

They barely made it out of the building before it exploded, throwing the four of them to the ground.

Erica watched, the heat rising from the explosion heating her retinas. They'd done it; they'd prevented what could have been a mass murder, so how could she feel guilty about the Visitors in that building who'd just been burned alive? No, this was war; she had to numb herself. They were the enemy, now, and Erica's job as an FBI agent was to protect her country.

But more than that, her priority was her family, and if the Visitors were going to invade something as simple as a flu shot, then she would stop at nothing to fight this war.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: I'm sorry in advance; this is a bit of an intense chapter and my first real cliffhanger of the story. Enjoy; I promise I'll have an update soon.

**Chapter Fourteen**

Tyler was floored once again. It didn't matter how many times he visited the mothership, he never tired of it.

Or of the one person he enjoyed visiting it with. His new girlfriend was everything he could have ever asked for; he was the luckiest guy in the world.

Well, that is, if he could get away with tonight. Yeah, he was grounded, but his mother was never home to enforce it, and even Kaitlyn didn't know where he was. He could come up with a pretty good lie, he was sure. Hell, he might even be able to get away with telling them he was home the whole time, what, hadn't they noticed?

But he couldn't resist the urge to visit Lisa, how could he? She was the most gorgeous piece of work this side of Heaven, and she had eyes only for him. As _if_ he was staying home tonight.

"Tyler, are you sure you're allowed to be here?" Lisa asked as he and Tyler strolled through the corridors on board. "I thought you said you were grounded."

"What my mother doesn't know can't hurt her." Tyler grinned. "There's nowhere I'd rather be than here."

Lisa's lips curled into that mischievous little smile he adored. "Well, I just don't want you getting in trouble on my behalf."

"The risk is worth it." Tyler shrugged. "Besides, I'm always in trouble."

"Such a rebel." Lisa giggled. "Anyway, I'm glad you could come tonight. I want you to meet my mother."

"Your mom?" Tyler immediately felt uncomfortable, tugging on his jacket. "Er, Lisa, I didn't know I'd have to, uh, meet the parents."

"Don't worry, Tyler. My mother is very excited about meeting you. I've already told her so much about you. You have nothing to worry about; my mother is a very kind person."

Before Tyler could protest, Tyler felt the presence of someone behind him. Judging by expression of recognition on Lisa's face as she gazed over his shoulder, he could only guess her mother was behind him.

He took a deep breath and turned around,

and found himself face to face with the woman he'd come to recognize over the past few weeks from the television, and all the V broadcasts.

Anna.

Tyler swallowed, as Lisa stepped beside him.

"Tyler, this is my mother," she said quietly. "Mother, this is Tyler."

Anna thrust her hand forward with a winning smile. "It is very nice to finally meet you, Tyler. Lisa has told me so many wonderful things about you."

Tyler grinned awkwardly.

"Uh, thanks." He stepped from foot to foot. "It's nice to meet you."

"And you." Anna motioned toward the corridor. "Why don't we all take a walk?"

Lisa shot Tyler a reassuring glance and Tyler's nerves began to settle. At least Lisa was with him.

The three toured the ship, as Anna showed Tyler things she hadn't even shown any other human being. She told him about their engines, and about something called Blue Energy, and about the joy she felt over being allowed to learn from the people of earth. She spoke with such confidence and a warm smile, Tyler couldn't help but feel at ease after even a few short moments. Anna was the bomb, and why shouldn't she be? She was Lisa's mother, after all.

"Tyler, I am so happy to know my daughter is with someone as strong-willed and kind as you." Anna smiled. "I want to know more about you, Tyler. Tell me about your family."

Ugh, Tyler thought. What a perfectly good way to ruin a perfecctly good night.

"Uh, well, my dad left a little while ago, so it's just me, my mom and my sister right now," Tyler explained, hoping that would be enough.

"What does your mother do?" Anna inquired.

"She's an FBI agent," Tyler replied.

"That sounds like a busy occupation."

Tyler rolled his eyes playfully. "You could say that."

"And you have a sister?" Anna stepped forward, seeming more interested. "Tell me about her."

"Kaitlyn? She's just a kid, well, I mean, she's 13. I guess I still think of her as a little kid, but she's growing up, I guess." Tyler couldn't help but smirk a little, thinking of Kaitlyn. "She's pretty cool, you know, for a kid. We get along alright."

"It sounds like you really care about her," Anna said warmly. "I bet you're very protective over her."

Tyler nodded. "Yeah, I guess."

Anna smiled, and before anything more could be said, Tyler felt a slight vibration in his pocket. His cell phone.

"Excuse me a sec," Tyler said politely as he yanked out his cell phone to read the incoming text. His stomach sank as he read Kaitlyn's message.

_Where the heck R U? U were supposed 2 pick me up half hour ago! Still waiting church! Ur dead!_

"Oh crap," Tyler said, forgetting who his company was for a slight moment. "Oh, I'm sorry. Look, thank you _so_ much for everything, but I've got to go."

"Is everything alright?" Anna wanted to know.

"Yeah, I just-" Tyler gripped his hair; his mother was going to murder him. If she found out Kaitlyn had been waiting outside for more than half an hour at night by herself, she was going to skin him alive. "I forgot to pick up my little sister. I was supposed to get her half an hour ago."

"Oh dear, well, I suppose you'd better hurry." Anna shook his hand again. "It was very nice to meet you, Tyler. We'll connect again soon."

Tyler shot an apologetic look toward Lisa, and then took off.

* * *

Anna and Lisa watched Tyler go in a hurry, while Anna smiled after him in approval.

"Lisa, I believe your initial observations were correct," Anna said. "Tyler does seem to be the one."

Lisa smiled. "I thought it might take longer, but I believe he may be ready, even now."

"You might be right, daughter." Anna tilted her head. "And we will have to keep the little sister in mind. Tyler seems to have a connection to her, a close relationship. She may be important down the road. See if you can get close to her too."

Lisa gave a nod. "As you wish, Mother."

* * *

Kaitlyn sat on the top step at St. James Church, glancing at her watch for the sixth time in ten minutes. Still no Tyler. Father Travis had locked up the building more than twenty minutes ago now, asking Kaitlyn for the third time if she was sure she didn't need a ride.

No, she'd told him, her brother would be here.

But now, looking at her watch again, Tyler was 45 minutes late!

Tears stabbed at Kaitlyn's eyes. No, it wasn't just Tyler being late. Bible study was awful without Freddie; it was a small enough group as it was, and she and Freddie had always been the youngest members, but tonight, she had nothing to say to anyone in the group. Without Freddie, it just wasn't the same.

And now, Tyler was late, and Kaitlyn was angry! What the hell was he doing, anyway? There was no way he was just sitting at home; he wouldn't have been late if he was just sitting at home. If she knew her brother, and boy did she, he probably snuck out. It wasn't like their mother would be home; what did he have to lose?

Except now Kaitlyn knew, and her anger was pooling over. No, she wasn't covering for him anymore. Not this time!

Before she could check her watch again, she heard the roar of a motorcycle's engine drawing near. Crossing her arms, Kaitlyn watched with dagger eyes as Tyler slowed his bike down in front of the church's steps. He ripped his helmet off, took in Kaitlyn's demeanor and sighed loudly.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? Get on, let's just go home before mom gets home," he said quickly.

Kaitlyn scoffed. "Yeah, you would like that, wouldn't you? You sneak out when you're grounded, and then forget to pick me up, and you expect me to, what, go home and cover for you again?"

"I didn't sneak out!" Tyler exclaimed.

"Oh really?" Kaitlyn raised an eyebrow. "So then you were just sitting at home and you conveniently forgot to pick me up? Come on, Tyler, I'm not stupid. You were with Lisa, weren't you?"

Even Tyler couldn't lie, not to Kaitlyn.

"Look, I'm here now, just don't say anything to mom." He revved his bike. "We can probably make it home before she gets home. Look, I've gotten into enough trouble, I don't need-"

"I don't give a _damn_ what you need!" Kaitlyn stood, fists clenched. She wondered if she'd ever screamed at her brother like this. No, she couldn't recall it, but everything had reached it's limit. Freddie was gone, her mother was never home, her family was in pieces, and Tyler was _late_! She couldn't take it! "You're always thinking of yourself! Why can't you just respect the rules for once in your life?"

"Oh yeah! This coming from Little Miss Perfect! You know, it's no wonder mom hates me! How do I stand a chance when there's a prissy little _saint_ living in the house!" Tyler retorted.

"Mom doesn't hate you, and you could _try_ a little harder to be decent!" Kaitlyn's throat was starting to hurt, and she was glad it was late; any passerby's would definitely be shooting them odd looks right about now. "I don't get what your deal is, playing up this rebellious streak! Just because dad left, doesn't give you the right to play by your own rules all of a sudden!"

"Oh and what do you know? _You_ just act like you don't even care he's gone!"

"I _don't_ care that he's gone!" Kaitlyn lied. "We can't change it, face reality! Get off your V cloud, or whatever it is! Just because you think you have the most _beautiful_ girlfriend in the world, doesn't mean you can forget what's really important, Tyler! Your family!" She was crying now, and she hated herself for it, but it was the truth. Tyler was letting the Visitors replace his own family, and Kaitlyn wanted to curse the Visitors because of it.

Tyler laughed sarcastically. "Seriously, Kaiti? You're just jealous because your little boyfriend dumped you!"

"He's not my boyfriend!"

"Well, how can you blame the poor idiot? Geez, Kaitlyn, _listen_ to you! You're nothing but a little Know-It-All!"

Kaitlyn's insides turned to ice, her eyes burned with the fiery tears that threatened. She wanted to punch him, she wanted to yell until she was hoarse, but she was frozen. She hated him in that moment, and the last thing she wanted to do was get on his bike.

"I'm walking home," she announced, taking the steps calmly, keeping her voice steady.

"Hell no! Mom would kill me if I let you walk home alone!" Tyler shouted at her.

"Then let her kill you. Maybe if she's in a good mood, she'll let me watch," Kaitlyn spat as she stepped away from her brother, walked down the sidewalk.

Tyler jumped off his bike.

"Kaitlyn, cut it out, and just get on the bike!" He was walking after her.

"Go away!" Kaitlyn shrieked.

"Stop being a baby, and get on!" Tyler reached out and took her arm.

"Get off me!" Kaitlyn screamed as she yanked her arm away.

"Damn it, Kaitlyn, just listen to me!" He reached for her again.

"Leave me alone!" Wanting so desperately to get away from him, she ducked away from him, and darted across the street in a blind frenzy.

"Kaitlyn, stop!"

But there was only enough time to see a pair of blinding lights, and the sound of screeching brakes that pierced her ears.

* * *

"Kaitlyn stop!"

Tyler's heart plummeted to his stomach when his little sister ran into the road, and was hit dead on by a pick up truck.

Tyler felt all the blood drain from his face as his tiny little sister flew almost ten feet before landing hard on the concrete.

"Kaitlyn!" he shrieked, finally able to move. He darted into the street and dropped to his next to Kaitlyn, who no longer seemed like Kaitlyn. She was bleeding everywhere, her arm was bent all funny, and her eyes were closed.

Was she breathing?

_Oh, you've got to be breathing!_

Tyler carefully collected his sister in his arms, and circled the street, panicking.

_Please wake up, Kaitlyn!_ He felt a tear roll down his cheek, and his heart clawing at his insides. _You gotta wake up, Kaiti! I'm sorry, I'm so, so, sorry!_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

Home at last!

Erica exhaled loudly as she crossed the threshold of her home. She was finally leaving the world behind her, just for a night! _What_ a night! She could have lost her life. She could still clearly see those mercenary V's storming that warehouse, locked on kill-mode to Erica and her team. She would have to be sure the rest of them had guns next time; she couldn't be the only one of them with a weapon.

But they'd done it; they managed to get out and destroy the warehouse with the flu vaccinations that held God only knew what. She was so happy Ryan figured it out before the next day; Erica would have brought her daughter to the doctor's office with no hangups, and who _knows_ what would have happened?

"Guys?" Erica called quietly, in case Kaitlyn was already in bed. After all, it was after ten. "Ty, you home?"

She took the stairs and checked both of their rooms, and felt her stomach sink.

Empty.

Deciding it wasn't the right time to panic yet, she went downstairs and checked all the rooms, calling their names, still receiving no response.

Panic decided to settle in, and then it amplified when she checked the garage and Tyler's bike was gone.

_Okay, Erica, they're fine, just call them._

Taking a deep breath, Erica pulled out her cell phone and called Tyler's cell. She listened as it rang and rang, eventually going to his voicemail. She hung up and tried Kaitlyn; it didn't matter how angry or busy Kaitlyn was, she _always_ answered her phone. Tyler, well, he was just as satisfied to let you worry for a while.

But when three rings became four, then five, then six before Kaitlyn's voicemail answered, Erica felt her stomach churn. This wasn't right; Kaitlyn would have answered.

_Unless something was wrong._

No. Nothing was wrong. Her battery was probably dead, that _had_ to be it. Erica reasoned she was just paranoid. After everything that went down at the warehouse, her nerves were shot.

Her heart sunk to her knees, as a whirlwind of 'what if's' invaded her mind.

What if the Visitors somehow discovered the identities of the four who'd destroyed the warehouse and all that vaccination? What if they knew Erica Evans was among them?

Worse, what if they found out she had children.

_Oh my-_

She yanked out her cell again and hit redial, desperation suffocating her as she waited for someone to pick up.

But as she passed by the hallway mirror, she spotted an intruder behind her in the reflection, holding up a knife.

As quick as lightning, Erica dropped her cell and ducked, kicking at her enemy's legs, dropping him with a heavy thud to the floor. Just as quickly, the man, eyes wild with murder, swung his legs out and tripped Erica, bringing her to the ground just as roughly. She scrambled to get away, but he jumped her, turned her over, held the knife up. The only thing stopping him was Erica's hands gripping his wrist tightly, pushing with every iota of strength she had, desperate for her life.

The man had super strength, but somehow, Erica was able to swing her head up to collide with his, causing him to roll off her. She acted fast, running as fast as her jelly legs would carry her into the kitchen, where she found the closest weapon; a cast-iron frying pan lying out on the counter.

As her attacker ran toward her at full-force, knife held high, Erica swung that frying pan for all it was worth, feeling her arms vibrate from the impact of the metal against the guy's skull.

Or whatever was in that guy's head; he had to be a Visitor. Nothing else made sense.

Catching her breath, she knelt down over him, and took his knife before checking to see if-

His eyes popped open, and his fingers laced themselves around Erica's throat, squeezing tight. Erica gagged for a quick second, before she remembered the knife in her hand, and plunged it into the attacker's heart.

He settled for good.

For a while, Erica couldn't move, but finally, drawing herself back to reality, the war that was at hand, the dangers the Visitors possessed, she reached for her cell phone and dialed Ryan's number.

"Erica, what is it?" Ryan asked, obviously aware Erica wouldn't call just to chat.

Struggling to maintain a calm demeanor, but failing as her voice quavered, she explained about the guy waiting for her, how he'd tried to kill her. She closed her eyes, suddenly thankful her children weren't at home.

But where _were_ they?

"Okay, stay where you are, I'm coming." Ryan sighed. "We gotta get rid of the body before the Visitors realizing they're short one guy."

"Look, Ryan, can you hurry?" Erica ran a clammy hand through her hair. "My kids are missing, and...and after this, I really just want to know where they are."

"I'm sure they're fine, Erica." Ryan wasn't so great at sympathy, Erica quickly realized.

"You're probably right, but I still want to look for them. Neither of them are answering their cell phones, and they're late." Erica sighed. "So the quicker you get here, the better."

* * *

It was Lisa who suggested they take Kaitlyn to a Visitor Healing Centre.

Good thing someone had their head firmly on their shoulders; Tyler was in a right panic.

Whoever hit Kaitlyn took off without a second glance, leaving Tyler surveying his little sister, unconscious and bloody. He didn't even know if she was _breathing_. Suffocating on his own breath, he had no idea what to do! He was lost, he was panicking. This was his fault, _oh what did I do?_

That was when his cell phone rang and Tyler saw it was his mother.

His stomach lurched; he thought he might puke right on the pavement.

He ignored the call, and instead called the only person in the world he trusted right now.

Lisa.

She arrived only moments later, or maybe it was longer, Tyler wasn't sure. Time seemed suspended; the longer Kaitlyn didn't move, the more Tyler feared for her life. He had at least placed a shaking hand over her mouth and nose and knew she was breathing.

But nobody could look like that and be okay.

Tyler couldn't even explain what happened to Lisa without streams of tears pooling down his cheeks. Any other day, he would have been embarrassed out of his skull to cry like this in front of the most beautiful girl in the world, but how could he not? Look at what he had done to Kaitlyn!

"Let's take her to a Healing Centre, Tyler." Lisa placed a calm and assuring hand on Tyler's arm. "I...I don't think there's anything a hospital can do for her."

The way she said it, the way her voice lowered, it stung Tyler, reeled him to a reality he didn't want to face. Kaitlyn was in bad shape, _really_ bad shape. _I don't think there's anything a hospital can do for her..._

Kaitlyn was going to die!

Tyler began to cry again, and Lisa grabbed hold of him, made him look at her.

"Tyler, don't give up, I said there's nothing a _hospital_ can do for her." Lisa managed a tiny smile. "But there might be something we can do."

And so Tyler held his broken little sister close as Lisa drove them to the nearest Visitor Healing Centre. Tyler forced himself not to look at Kaitlyn, not to let himself think about the blood on his hands, about the haggard breathing coming from her lips. It sounded like she was really struggling.

_I can't! I can't lose her!_

They entered the Visitor Healing Centre, and Lisa spoke to some guys who looked like doctors. Tyler couldn't be sure; they were wearing all white, but what did he know? All he knew was how his heart savaged within him when the men came and pried his little sister from his arms.

He wanted to fight them, he never wanted to let her go, but Lisa's hands were on his strong arms, assuring him Kaitlyn was in the right hands; they would do what they could with Visitor technology and medicine.

And so, they could only wait.

Tyler stood in absolute silence, pacing wildly, his heart in a fury. If anything happened to Kaitlyn...

_It was because we were fighting. It was because I was more interested in my girlfriend than picking up my little sister._ Tyler puffed out a breath, feeling his phone vibrate again. He checked; it was his mom.

Tyler ignored it. He wasn't ready to face this, not yet. How could he tell his mother Kaitlyn could...could be dead?

No, he couldn't talk to her, not until he knew everything was going to be okay.

It had to be okay.

He felt Lisa's arms intertwine in his own, but he was numb, only mindful of Kaitlyn, out of sight, but far from his mind.

She had to be okay.

She just _had_ to be.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter Sixteen**

Tyler felt as though he was falling asleep sitting up here in the waiting room for news about his sister, _any_ news! Only moments had passed, really, but none of those V doctors who had taken her away, taken his bleeding, unconscious, pale, sister away, had come back with news of any kind.

Lisa kept trying to assure him Kaitlyn would be fine; she had all kinds of faith in her people, in their technology, and maybe Tyler had, but that was before it was Kaitlyn, before it was all his fault.

And his cell was ringing off the hook! Still his mother, time after time, but he couldn't answer, against Lisa's objections.

"You really should answer, Tyler," she said softly. "It's very late, and she is probably very worried about the two of you."

But no, he didn't have it in him to explain this, not yet. It was bad enough he would have to face his mother at some point about all of this, but until someone came to tell him Kaitlyn was going to be okay, there was nothing he could say to his mother that would make anybody feel better.

"Tyler Evans?"

The voice wasn't Lisa's, and it rattled him out of his thoughts. He jumped to his feet when a man in a white jacket approached him. Tyler was sure his heart had stopped.

"Is...is she-, my sister..." He couldn't even find the words, but the man smiled assuredly.

"She is going to be fine," he said confidently. "Our technology was able to restore her to absolute health. She's just this way."

Tyler felt as though every tense muscle loosened in that second. He had to say it again and again in his mind, like he couldn't believe it. _Kaitlyn is okay. Kaitlyn is okay._

He mechanically followed the doctor, with Lisa trailing behind him, until they came to the outside of a room, and a window revealed what was inside.

And there was Kaitlyn, lying on a small platform, wide awake, looking away with disgust as some other doctor stuck a needle in her arm. Tyler swallowed; she looked...good as new. There was no blood, no bruises, no cuts even, and her arm, the one he was sure had been smashed to pieces, looked fine. Tyler couldn't tear his eyes away; it was...it was a miracle.

"I told you she'd be okay, Tyler," Lisa whispered. "Why don't you go see her?"

But Tyler couldn't move - yes, Kaitlyn was okay, thank _God_ for that, but still, how could he face her after what he did? What could he possibly say?

In that second, Kaitlyn's eyes flickered toward him, locked on his. Tyler's whole world spun fiercely. Those eyes that held him, he couldn't take it.

"I can't right now," Tyler said, his voice shaking. "I...I have to go call my mom."

And with that, he bolted down the corridor, leaving Kaitlyn watching after him with a threatening tear in her eye.

* * *

The V's body was taken care of. Ryan went back to headquarters to do some more research on the injection the Visitors would probably get more of, and Erica was worried sick. It was nearing midnight, and still no sign of her children! It didn't matter how many times Ryan had tried to convince her the Visitors hadn't seen them, couldn't know Erica was among the team that blew up that warehouse, Erica feared for her children's safety. If the Visitors ever found out what Erica had done, who would they go after first? She paled at the thought.

She gave up on their cellphones; nine times she'd tried phoning them in the last hour, and she still got both of their answering machines. Now, she was driving around helplessly, searching for any sign of Ty's bike, but still, nothing.

Erica tried not to let panic engulf her, but how could it not? Her children were missing, had been for over three hours now! Where could they possibly-

Her phone buzzed.

Erica skidded over to the side of the road and shakily grabbed her cell, feeling her whole body relax ever so slightly when she saw the text 'Tyler' appear on her cell's screen.

She answered, and tried to control the steadiness of her voice. "Tyler! Where are you? Where have you been?"

"Mom..." Oh no, something was wrong; Tyler sounded as though he'd been crying, his voice was shaking. Something was very wrong.

"Tyler, what's going on?" Erica tried a little more calmly, realizing the panicked-mother voice wasn't going to do anybody any favours right now.

Tyler was silent for a second, and Erica fought to remain patient. She couldn't risk angering her son and having him hang up on her. She _had_ to know what was going on.

"Mom, there...there was an...an accident."

Erica felt the blood drain from her face. _Accident...Tyler's okay...but Kaiti?..._

"Where's Kaitlyn?" Erica asked instinctively, glad she pulled over to the side of the road.

"We're...we're at the Visitor's Healing Centre on Seventh." Tyler managed. "They...they healed her."

_Healed her...that meant she was hurt._

"Tyler, what happened?" Erica gripped the steering wheel tightly, feeling her eyes sting with tears, thankful even in that small fraction of a second that Kaitlyn was okay.

"She was hit by a car." Tyler's voice broke, and Erica could tell he was fighting back tears. "Lisa...Lisa came and we brought her here."

"Why didn't you call me?" Erica demanded. Enough of this; both her children were fine, but Kaitlyn...oh sweet Kaitlyn! "Why didn't you call me first?"

"I...I was scared." Tyler choked.

The Visiting Healing Centre. The V's had her daughter. It was enough to make her sick.

"Tyler, why didn't you just bring her to the hospital?" Erica wanted to know, signalling and pulling back out into traffic. She had to get to that centre, she had to see her baby girl, see with her own eyes she was okay.

"Because...they wouldn't have been able to help her, mom." Tyler breathed deeply. "It was...it was so bad."

Erica swallowed. "How bad, Ty?"

Tyler's silence shook Erica to her core, until he spoke, in a very low voice. "She almost...she would've...if the V's hadn't..."

So it was bad.

"Tyler, don't go anywhere, I'm on my way. Stay with Kaiti, tell her everything's going to be alright."

Tyler didn't respond, so Erica hung up and broke all the speed limits as she made her way to Seventh Street, finally allowing a tear trickle down her cheek, as her heart hammered into her chest the truth that she may have lost her daughter tonight. Her little girl, her baby.

But she didn't.

No.

Because of the V's.

Reminded of the Visitors, Erica reached for her cell and dialed Ryan's number. He had asked her to let him know when she found her children. It was the last thing she felt like doing, but she called him anyway.

"Erica?" Ryan's voice broke through the silence.

"Ryan, I found my kids." Erica sighed deeply, trying to form the words. "Kaitlyn was hit by a car, and Ty took her a Visitor's Healing Centre, and I'm on-"

"Wait! He took her to a healing centre?" Ryan's voice took on a sense of urgency.

"I know, the irony is disgusting." Erica didn't have time for this. "She's fine, they healed her, and according to Tyler-"

"No, Erica, you don't understand!" Ryan sighed heavily. "That injection we just finished blowing up, I found out we didn't get all of it."

Erica's stomach sank. She didn't like where this was going, not at all.

"The stuff's called R6. I've been trying to get as much information about it as I can. I don't know what it's for, but I did find out that the V's have been using the stuff on every single human being who comes into their healing centres. They're still calling it the vitamin injection, but I gauruntee it's not vitamins, Erica," Ryan explained.

"Are you telling me they're going to give my little girl this injection?" Erica sped up, rounded a corner so fast, her tires screeched.

"Yes, they will, if they haven't already." Ryan sighed. "If you can stop them from giving it to her, I would. I'm still trying to figure out what it's for, but if I know the Visitors, it's not going to be for anything good."

Erica clapped her phone shut and focused on the road. First, the Visitors came and invaded the world with their presence. Then, they corrupted her son. Then, one of them tried to kill her tonight, and _now_, they were sticking her little girl with something she knew nothing about. She could only hope that she could get to the Centre before they injected her.

Otherwise, it all rested on Ryan to find out what R6 was, and what it would do, and if she could stop it from hurting Kaitlyn.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter Seventeen**

Erica didn't bother to stop and check if she did a decent parking job once she turned into the Visitor's Healing Centre. Let them give her a ticket; she was an FBI agent, and her daughter nearly _died_ tonight! She'd fight that ticket until she was blue in the face, and she'd win.

Anyway.

She jogged inside, and wandered down hallways blindly until she recognized a blonde head. It was Lisa, and right next to her was her son.

"Tyler!" Erica shouted, and her heart sank when her son spun around and a look of sheer panic erupted on his face.

Erica didn't care who was watching; she pulled her son into a tight hug when she saw him, forgetting for a split second that there was so much more to this story than Tyler was letting on. He had sounded...guilty over the phone, and Erica couldn't help but wonder if he somehow felt...responsible for Kaitlyn's accident.

So what had happened?

Well, he certainly wasn't saying anything, he was as white as a sheet. This would take some coaxing.

"Answer your damn phone next time, Bubba!" Erica chastized, taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, mom." Tears were filling her son's eyes. "I'm so sorry, mom, I can't...I'm just, I'm sorry."

Yeah, something was going on.

Erica stared hard. "We'll talk about this once I'm sure Kaiti's okay, but there had _better_ be a good explanation for this, Tyler!"

Tyler seemed too dumbfounded to come up with a response, so Erica quickly asked where Kaitlyn was, and after Lisa pointed out the way, Erica jogged down, her heart suddenly racing ahead of her.

She prepared herself for the worst. Tyler said Kaitlyn came close to death; what did her baby look like?

But when she came to a window outside of an examining room, she peered inside and felt tears penetrate her vision. Her little girl, lying on a platform, covered with a thin white sheet, eyes closed. Breath caught in her throat, Erica burst into the room, where a Visitor with a white lab coat approached her, seemingly concerned.

"Ma'am, you can't be-"

"I'm her mother!"

The V settled down and offered a sympathetic smile. "Don't worry, she's fine. Just sleeping right now. Our healing technology is an exhausting process for a human being, but Kaitlyn is a lucky girl. Her brother brought her here just in time."

_Just in time..._

Erica forced a smile as the Visitor excused himself and left the room, leaving Erica alone with her daughter.

Suddenly, reality suspended her. This was her daughter, her baby, her youngest, her little girl, lying here, she'd been _hit by a car!_ But she was alive, she was breathing, and there wasn't a mark on her. Erica couldn't help but wonder what she'd looked like before she'd come here. No, she didn't want to think about it; she couldn't.

Erica stepped up beside her daughter, just stared at her, revelled in her. _I should have been the one to pick her up from church,_ Erica thought, feeling a bitter tear. _What kind of a mother am I?_

Erica let her eyes leave her daughter long enough to realize there was a small table beside her, an empty vial and a syringe.

Her heart seized. What had Ryan said? "_The V's have been using the stuff on every single human being who comes into their healing centres. They're still calling it the vitamin injection, but I gauruntee it's not vitamins, Erica."_

He'd called it R6.

Erica shakily reached for the empty vial, searched for text, a clue.

There it was, like a sharp blade in her stomach.

R6.

Was she too late? Had they already given this to her daughter? Or was this for somebody else.

Erica went to work, gently pulling down the sheet covering her daughters, scanning her arms carefully until she noticed it on Kaitlyn's right bicep. A tiny pinhole.

Kaitlyn had R6 running through her blood.

But what was it? What the _hell_ was it? Was it dangerous? Erica instinctively checked her cell phone to see if Ryan had called with news, but no, nothing yet.

Erica was about to grab her cell phone and call Ryan herself when Kaitlyn began to stir. Erica's heartstrings pulled her away from the moment. Right now, all Erica wanted was to make sure her daughter was okay.

Kaitlyn's eyes fluttered open, and Erica couldn't help but feel a smile touch her lips as she stifled a sob. _She's okay, she's going to be okay._

Erica reached out and stroked Kaitlyn's chestnut brown hair, and smiled down when Kaitlyn's eyes met her mother's.

"Hey baby," Erica said softly. Kaitlyn breathed out slowly, bit her lip and managed the tiniest smile of all.

"Hi mom," she replied, looking around carefully. "Is...is Tyler here?"

That was an odd question.

"He's here, outside with Lisa. He brought you here, to the Visitor's Healing Centre," Erica said.

"I know, I already talked to the V's. I was just sleeping; I'm so tired." Kaitlyn sighed. "I...I saw Tyler earlier, through the window. He...he wouldn't come in."

Erica puckered her brow; that wasn't like Tyler. Even when they did fight, Tyler loved his sister more than anything. If she was hurt, why wouldn't he want to see her?

Yes, something had happened, before Kaiti was hit by that car.

"How are you feeling, baby?" Erica asked, trying to lay the Tyler issue to rest for a second. Kaitlyn sighed.

"Just tired. I'm not hurt anywhere, which is weird. That one Visitor said, well...he said I was in bad shape, and I might not be here if it wasn't for Tyler bringing me here." Kaitlyn rolled her eyes, lowering her voice to a whisper. "But _I_ think he should have taken me to the hospital. I...I don't really like it here, it's weird."

_You're not the only one, baby, and you're not far off the mark._

"I know, honey, but all that matters is that you're okay." Erica engulfed her daughter in a hug. "We'll go home as soon as we can."

Kaitlyn smiled and seemed happy about this.

"Kaitlyn?" Erica paused, knowing her question might upset her daughter, but she had to know what was going on, why Tyler was acting out of sorts, why he wouldn't even _see_ his sister. "Do you remember what happened...before you were hit by that car?"

Kaitlyn's face went wide, and she started gnawing on her lip. Yes, something had happened alright; Kaitlyn never bit at her lip unless she was nervous. Erica put a hand on her daughter's.

"Nobody's in trouble, Mouse, I just need to know. It's a mom thing." She forced a smile in hopes to reassure her daughter.

Kaitlyn eventually released a heavy sigh and stared at the ceiling.

"It's just..." The poor girl seemed to conflicted. "Tyler was late, so when he showed up, I was mad, and we...we got into a really bad fight, and I...I ran into the road. But, please don't get mad at Tyler, it was my fault! I...I shouldn't have gotten all mad about him being late, I just..."

"How late?"

Kaitlyn bit her lip again.

"Kaitlyn?"

"An hour..."

"So you were waiting outside of the church for an _hour_ by yourself?" Erica sighed heavily. "Why didn't you call _me?_"

"Because I didn't want Tyler getting in trouble." Kaitlyn was fighting back tears. Oh Kaitlyn, her little peacekeeper. All she ever wanted was for everyone to get along. Erica sighed; now it all made sense. Tyler felt guilty because if he had just been on time like he was damned well _supposed_ to be, there would have been no fight, and Kaitlyn wouldn't have been hit.

"Don't get mad at Tyler, mom, it's okay. _I'm_ okay now, we can forget all this." Kaitlyn almost sounded desperate, so Erica only smiled reassuringly at her daughter.

"Honey, don't you worry about a thing. You just rest for now; I'm going to find out when we can take you home, okay?" Erica kissed Kaitlyn's forehead and left the examining room. Her smile dropped, and she treaded a war path toward her eldest, who was still waiting out in the waiting area with Lisa.

"Tyler Evans, I want to speak with you." Erica shot a look at Lisa. "Privately."

Lisa managed a tiny smile for Tyler, and one for Erica before she headed down the hallway, leaving Erica alone with her son, who shuffled uncomfortably. Erica wanted so strongly to keep herself calm, to keep from freaking out, but she was mad, _mad_ about everything. She stared at her son evenly.

"_First_ of all, you didn't answer of my calls; that's strike one! Do you have any idea how _worried_ I was? I give the two of you cell phones so I can get in _touch_ with you when I have to! Panic is not a fun experience for a mother, Tyler! You should have answered my calls, or even better, you should have _called_ me! I'm the mother, I get to make the decisions!"

Erica took a breath, Tyler's face was changing from panic, to anger. Erica even thought she caught him rolling her eyes once.

"_Second_ of all, where were you?"

"What?" He seemed caught off guard.

"Tonight; where were you?" Erica kept her gaze steady. Tyler looked nervous, like he hadn't realized he'd be caught in his own lie.

"I was at home," he stammered.

"Nice try. If you were _just_ at home, you wouldn't have been an _hour_ late picking up your sister!" Erica was fuming now; so much for maintaining a calm demeanor. "She sat out there for an hour by herself! So where were you, when you're _supposed_ to be grounded, I might add, that was so much more important than your little sister?"

Tyler didn't answer, he just glared defiantly.

"You know what, I don't even want to know! It doesn't seem to matter what rules I set, Tyler, you just break them! But what I will _not_ tolerate is either of your's safety! I asked you to pick up your sister because I didn't want her walking home by herself; do you think her sitting out there that late by herself at her age was any better?"

"Look, mom, I'm sorry! I was late, I get that, but I got there! And when I did, she spazzed out on me! She got all mad and started saying all this stuff, so we started fighting! And then she wouldn't get on the bike! She was gonna walk home, so I tried to get her on the bike, but she ran away from me, into the road, and..." He sighed angrily.

"Tyler," Erica began, a little more calm. "_You're_ the big brother, you're supposed to keep your cool, own up and apologize. She would have calmed down, and gotten on your bike. But you lost your cool, you got angry too. Tyler, honey, she looks up to you, you can't deny that or get out of it. She doesn't have a dad right now, so she looks to you. You've got a responsibility with her, Bubba."

Tyler finally met his mother's gaze, and she could almost see a tear brewing in the corner of his eye.

"You say Kaiti doesn't have a dad?" Tyler zipped up his jacket. "Well, mom, in case you hadn't noticed, _I_ don't have one either, and it's because of you!"

Before Erica could respond or call after him, her son was out the door with a slam.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter Eighteen**

The next morning, Erica rolled over and groaned. She hadn't slept a single wink the night before; how could she, with everything going on? At least both her children were home, that much was enough to bring a smile to Erica's face. Sure, Tyler was still quiet as ever, hostile, distant, but at least Kaitlyn was okay, and she was home. The Visitors gave Kaitlyn a clean bill of health the night before, and Kaitlyn was more than thrilled that she'd be able to sleep in her own bed.

Erica only wished she had been privy to the conversation that went down between Tyler and Kaitlyn last night. Kaitlyn had been lying in her bed all quiet-like until Tyler wandered in late. Erica laid awake in her own bed, hearing the patter of Kaitlyn's feet down the hall, quietly knocking on Tyler's door, and being accepted in.

She was only in there all of ten minutes, but there was no shouting, no stomping, no doors slamming. Yes, Erica wanted to know what had happened, but she supposed there were some things that stayed between siblings. She was just happy there wasn't any more fighting. Tyler needed Kaitlyn; she kept him in line, at least, for the most part.

Then there was the other issue that kept Erica up all night; the R6. Ryan had finally returned her call the night before, with information about what the R6 was for.

"Erica, it's a tracking device. It won't hurt your daughter, but it might, in the long run. Not the chemicals, that stuff is harmless, but the Visitors are putting this stuff in everybody, so they can keep tabs. I don't know why, but think about this, Erica. If the V's ever suspect your involvement in the resistance, even for a second, it doesn't matter how deep into hiding you go; they've got your daughter in their system. They find her, you better believe they'll find you, and who knows what lengths they'll go to to get to you," Ryan explained.

The thought had made Erica sick; she'd seen what was beyond the Visitor's skin, what they were capable of. To put her daughter at risk...

"How do I stop them from tracking Kaitlyn?" she'd asked. "I can't let the Visitors have that kind of power, Ryan. Tell me how to stop them."

"I may have a way, but I still have to look into it some more. There's a doctor I know of, who used to be a Visitor. She's underground, like me. She might know something about how to remove the R6."

Erica made him swear to fill her as the _second_ he knew anything!

Kaitlyn woke up feeling as refreshed, even though in all reality, she'd only slept maybe six hours. It must have been all the sleep she got waiting for the V's to let her go home.

It still felt weird, admitting if it wasn't for the Visitors, she'd probably be dead. She didn't remember getting hit by a car, and that was probably a good thing; how awful of a memory would _that_ be to carry around for the rest of your life. No, it was good the only thing she remembered was the fight, and waking up at the healing centre.

Still, the V's kind of creeped her out.

At least everything was okay between her and Tyler. She knew he felt guilty about what happened; she'd known from the time she first woke up in the Healing Centre, saw Tyler's face outside that window. He had refused to come in and see her, and she could see it in his eyes; he was afraid, afraid to face her. What he didn't realize then was how much Kaitlyn just needed his presence. She'd forgotten all about the fight, who even _cared_ anymore? Besides, it was her own stupid fault for running into the street without looking. What was she, three?

Anyway, she'd lain awake last night thinking about it, because Tyler didn't come home with her and her mother. He'd come home eventually, and when he did, Kaitlyn had to make sure he knew she wasn't mad. And that was exactly what she'd done.

Quietly, she'd tiptoed to his bedroom after he creeped in after curfew (which didn't even make sense, since he was still technically grounded, but whatever). His face was as white as a sheet as he managed to stutter an 'are you okay?' They'd sat down and talked, then. Tyler was never one for emotional moments, so Kaitlyn tried to keep it light, but it was Tyler who eventually yanked her into a hug, and told her how much he'd never forgive himself if anything ever happened. Kaitlyn, wanting nothing more than her goofy brother back, punched him playfully and told him he was stuck with her, so like it or not, she wasn't going anywhere. He seemed pleased as punch about that. Good, at least everything was okay. Still, Tyler apologized every second sentence or so that night, annoying Kaitlyn, but she let him anyway; if it made him feel better, then okay.

Dressing the next morning, she took the stairs quickly and barrelled into the kitchen, where her mother stared at her, horror-struck.

"Kaitlyn Beverly Evans, what do you think you're doing?" Erica chastized. "In case you forgot, you were hit by a _car_ last night! Think you could take it a little easier?"

Kaitlyn had to smile. "Mom, I feel fine. Believe me, I don't _feel_ like I was hit by any car. Anyway, I'm just rushing, because I don't wanna be late for school."

Erica choked on her banana. "School? Are you nuts, Kaiti-B? You're not going to school after all that."

"But _mooom!_ I'm fine, I promise! I'm not hurt, I'm not even tired! Come on, I don't want to stay home all day by myself. Tyler will be in school, and it's not like you're going to stay home with me, so how boring is that? I'd rather be in school."

Erica sighed as she finished the rest of her banana. She seemed to really be considering this, Kaitlyn couldn't help but cross her fingers. Yes, she understood where her mother was coming from, but if she was situated in Kaitlyn's body right now, she'd realize how totally fine she was.

"You have your cell phone with you?" Erica inquired with a serious eyebrow lift.

Kaitlyn nodded.

"I don't care what any of your teachers say, you keep that phone on you _all_ day long, and if you feel sick, or in pain, or even remotely tired, you call me, and I'll come get you, kapeesh?" Erica asked.

Kaitlyn smiled. "Kapeesh. Thanks mom." She leaned over the country and planted a kiss on her mother's cheek. "I'll see you later."

She ran for the door, and just as she was heading out the door, she heard her mother's voice trailing from the kitchen.

"Hey! Take it easy, or I might change my mind!"

* * *

Erica had gone straight to the office for a little while, but found herself distracted, as usual. With all the V stuff going down, with all that she and her allies knew about the Visitors, it was difficult to get much FBI work done seriously. How many people was she working with who were planted Visitors? Every move she made got her paranoid. She couldn't do anything that roused suspiscion.

But their team needed help, that was for sure. A resistance could hardly do much of anything with a priest, a rebel Visitor, a vengeful man and an FBI agent. Sure, it was a start, and everybody brought something to the table, but they needed more.

And that was why Erica had her sights on Kyle Hobbes.

He was a killer the FBI had been tracking for a long time, and Erica was among the agents assigned to his case. Lately, she'd been following a couple of leads, and felt she knew how to get to him, but she hadn't told her boss, or any other agents. No, she couldn't help but wonder what their resistance would look like if they could recruit him for their cause. A terrorist, a known killer, someone who'd been able to evade the law for years! What he could teach them about staying under the radar, about fighting a war.

Now, Erica was meeting with Jack, Ryan and Georgie in their basement, and after she explained her plan to recruit Kyle Hobbes, silence ensued. Jack sighed loudly, but he was like that. He disagreed with every plan they'd had so far. Sure, he believed in their cause, but he was a little sketchy with the details. Priests.

It was Ryan who spoke first.

"You do realize this man is potentially dangerous." He sighed. "Are you ready to risk all of our lives for the sake of the resistance?"

"Look, I realize it's a shot in the dark, and yeah, maybe he is dangerous, but if we can get him on our side, think of the gain! He's been able to hide out from the FBI for years; he can help us when the time comes to hide our operation," Erica rebuttled.

"I think it's worth a shot," Georgie said. "What have we got to lose?"

"Our lives?" Jack asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't think Hobbes will kill us," Erica said.

"You want to risk our entire operation on a hunch you have, Erica?" Ryan asked, crossing his arms and standing by Jack. "More than that, are you sure you're ready to go to war against Anna?"

Erica's mind went to her son, her oldest child who was so entranced with the Visitors, he wasn't thinking straight. She thought of her youngest, her little girl, who'd been injected with R6, meaning the Visitors probably already knew her every move. No, this war had gone far enough already.

"She's brainwashed my son, and is watching my daughter," Erica growled. "I will do _whatever_ it takes to blow that bitch out of the sky!"


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

Kaitlyn unlocked the front door after school that day to find out she was alone. Well, what else was new? Although, she had to admit, she was a little surprised. Her mother had been surprisingly paranoid that morning when Kaitlyn begged to go to school, and Kaitlyn half expected to find Erica waiting at the front door to make sure Kaitlyn was okay.

No such luck; as always, her home was as empty as it was every other day after school.

What a bad day it had been; Freddie had ignored her _all_ day. She had hoped his fanatical obsession with the V's was simply related to his field trip to the mother ship, but apparently those guys he'd gone with were his new best friends, and they weren't interested in including Kaitlyn.

Well, it wasn't like Kaitlyn had any other friends, so what a lonely day _that_ was. And now, here she was, in a lonely home. _Face it, Kait; you're destined to live a life of loneliness._

She plopped moodily on the sofa and flipped on the television, something she rarely did. Homework could wait, but as she scanned through the channels, she saw that Anna was on every single channel. Apparently, she was seen as some kind of Saviour now, because her technology had successfully discovered a deadly aneurism in TV reporter Chad Dekker's brain, and now he was being treated. Apparently, he would have died had it not been for the V's advanced technology. Kaitlyn couldn't help but shiver. According to the V doctors and Tyler's version of what had happened last night, _she_ would have died had it not been for the V's advancec technology. Well, it wasn't like Kaitlyn wasn't _grateful; _it just meant the V's had state-of-the-art technology that humanity hadn't discovered yet. It didn't make them Saviours. Did _they_ ever come back from the dead to save humanity from their sins?

Kaitlyn shut off the TV and reached for her backpack. Even homework seemed better than hearing people praising aliens from outer space.

Just as she was about to read through a chapter of _A Tale of Two Cities_, the book she'd chosen for her novel study, she heard the front door open. Kaitlyn couldn't help but perk up; she hadn't spoken to a single human being since her mother had chastized her this morning.

But it wasn't her mother; it was Tyler.

"Hey Ty!" Kaitlyn exclaimed, maybe a little too eagerly. Tyler entered the living room and flashed her a smile.

"Hey, sis." His smile dropped. "Uh, how're you feeling?"

She could see it in his eyes, he still felt guilty about last night.

"Ty, I'm totally fine, so stop giving yourself a hard time, it's done, okay?" She smiled when he relaxed a little. "Anyway, where were you?"

"I was with Lisa, up on the mother ship."

"Did mom suddenly _un-_ground you?"

Tyler shrugged. "Who knows with her, she probably doesn't even remember grounding me in the first place."

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes playfully. Yes, she wanted to give him a hard time about how he never listened to their mother, but he already felt like a jerk for last night, and the two of them were finally getting along; she hardly wanted to ruin that, not now.

"Hey Kay, I wanna tell you something." Tyler reached into his pocket as he settled into the armchair across from her. He passed her a brochure, and Kaitlyn's stomach sank when she saw the letter 'V' at the top in bold red.

"What is this?" Kaitlyn asked with a sigh.

"It's so cool! It's a new program Anna's going to announce tomorrow, but she told me about it today. She wanted to tell me first because, you know, Lisa and I are getting serious and that makes me look great in Anna's eyes. Anyway, it's called the Live-Aboard Program. It's so cool. You get to actually _live_ on the mothership!"

Kaitlyn looked up, without even opening the brochure. Her heart, her stomach, _everything_ sank with those words.

"You..._live_ on the mothership?"

"Yeah! Wouldn't that be so cool?" He sighed, then, as if he knew Kaitlyn wasn't taking it the way he'd hoped. "I'm...I'm gonna do it, Kaiti."

Kaitlyn dropped the brochure and stared hard at her only brother.

"What, just like that?" She raised her voice. "You're just gonna ditch us?"

Tyler was taken aback.

"Kay, it's not like that, it's just..." He sighed. "Look, things aren't easy for me here, alright? I love mom, but I just...I think things would be easier if I lived up on the mother ship."

"Easier for _who_? You or us? And what makes you think mom's even gonna go for this?" Kaitlyn felt tears stinging her eyes, but she held them back as best she could. She didn't want to appear devastated by this news; she would rather her brother see her as angry than sad.

"She can't tell me what to do, Kaitlyn," Tyler replied, calmer. "Can't you just respect that this is something I have to do?"

Kaitlyn bit her lip, looking away. No, she couldn't respect it. The Visitors were ruining her life. First Freddie, and now her brother? How much more was she going to lose?

"I get it, Tyler." Kaitlyn grabbed her bag in a blind impulse. "You're just like dad."

Before Tyler even got a chance to respond, Kaitlyn sped from the house in what felt like the speed of light, and even that wasn't fast enough.

* * *

Erica pulled into the driveway of her home, surprised she was home so early. What a long day it had been. She still couldn't believe it; Kyle Hobbes hadn't been as difficult to locate as originally anticipated, and though it took time, they were able to enlist him for their side. Of course, it helped that Kyle Hobbes had apparently never murdered anybody, and it was the Visitors who had framed him. Chalk one up for the resistance; Hobbes wanted revenge against the V's, and he was more than ready to join the fighting side.

He would be hard to work with, Erica could see that already. He was hard, cold and didn't seem the type to follow the rules. Not that the resistance had any rules, but Hobbes seemed such a rogue. Could he actually be a part of a unified resistance?

Only time could tell.

Seeing Tyler's bike in the driveway, Erica smiled to herself, happy that, for once, all three of them would be home for dinner. Maybe Erica would take them out, have a family dinner together. When was the last time they'd done that?

Erica let herself in the house and called out for her children, but it was only Tyler who came down the stairs, a sheepish look on his face.

"Hi Tyler," Erica tried gently. She hadn't spoken to her son since last night at the Visitor Healing Centre, and Erica half expected things to get tense again, but Tyler just smiled awkwardly. Erica couldn't help but be thankful for a moment of connection with her son that didn't end in conflict.

"Where's your sister? I thought we could all go out for dinner, what do you think?" Erica asked, dropping her purse by the front door. Tyler cleared his throat.

"She's not here."

Erica met her son's eyes. "What do you mean she's not here? Is she still at school?" She checked her watch. It was nearing 6:30p.m. She couldn't possibly still be at school.

"I don't know where she went, mom." Tyler sighed. "She ran off before I could ask."

"What do you mean she _ran_ off?" Erica took a step toward Tyler. "What happened?"

Tyler got that look in his eye; he was getting angry. "Look, it doesn't matter what I say around here, I just end up in trouble anyway!"

"Tyler?"

He huffed, but Erica held his gaze until he spoke.

"I told her about the Live-Aboard Program."

Erica raised an eyebrow. "The _what?_"

Tyler handed her a brochure. "The V's are starting a Live-Aboard Program, you know, for people to go and live on the ship. I told Kaitlyn I was gonna do it, and-"

"And you didn't bother talking to _me_ about this?" Erica asked, crossing her arms.

"Mom, come on, I mean, I'm not a baby anymore, I-"

"We can talk about _this_" Erica waved the brochure, "later. Did Kaitlyn run off after you told her about this?"

Tyler nodded, and when his mother didn't answer right away, he huffed again. "Look, mom, what was I _supposed_ to do? Pin her down and sit on her until she decided she was done being angry?"

"Don't raise your voice with me, Tyler." Erica could feel her stomach churning. First her son had been sucked into the Visitor's delusions of grandeur, then they stuck her daughter with a tracking device and now Tyler wanted to _live_ with them? She felt she could collapse.

Instead, she walked away. She didn't want to face her son, not now. First, she needed to find her daughter.

* * *

Kaitlyn walked until her legs hurt. No, she didn't have a destination in mind, but who needed one? The only thing she knew was that she didn't want to go home. How could she even call that place a home? First her father ditched her, and now her big brother. How long would it be before Erica decided she, also, was tired of Kaitlyn and took off? How many more months before Kaitlyn was orphaned entirely?

Okay, so maybe she was being a little over-dramatic, but it cut her to the core; everybody she cared about left her. She practically _hated_ her dad for leaving their family in shambles, hanging on by barely a thread, and then Freddie, with his sudden denouncing of the faith and now Tyler? How much more could she take?

The worst part was she couldn't even cry. There were no tears; well, she figured they were somewhere, but somewhere deep. Maybe she was saving them for the privacy of her own bedroom; crying while walking down the street would only draw attention.

Her cell kept buzzing. Missed call. Missed text. New voicemail. On it went. Kaitlyn didn't bother answering, or returning any messages. It was her mother; _where are you, answer the phone._ But Kaitlyn felt numb, felt like she didn't care. Let her worry; it wasn't like she was ever around anyway.

Kaitlyn could almost taste the bitterness she felt on her tongue, seeping down her throat, infecting her whole body. Her muscles were tense, her fingers tingled, she wanted to lash out at something, but she was alone, as always.

There was the tear, finally, stabbing her eye.

Somehow, she ended up at the loading dock for the mothership. Nobody was around. She was alone.

As Kaitlyn raised her head, fingers interlocking in the wire-fenced that separated her from the small shuttle ships parked in a neat row, she saw the mothership up close and personal for the first time since that first day in the crowded streets of New York City. Kaitlyn sighed, staring at the big hunk of metal. What _was_ the big deal anyway? Big and flashy wasn't always the cat's meow; Jesus, after all, came as a carpenter, and look at what _He_ did!

Kaitlyn rammed her head against the fence, hard, as her phone buzzed in her pocket.

"Leave me alone!" Kaitlyn seethed through gritted teeth, clutching at the wire-fence with every iota of strength she had.

"Kaitlyn?"

Kaitlyn whirled around and faced Lisa, who seemed surprised to see her. Kaitlyn cleared her throat, turned away.

"Tyler's not with me," Kaitlyn couldn't help but mutter under her breath.

"What are you doing here?" Lisa wanted to know, approaching Kaitlyn carefully, taking a quiet spot beside her. Kaitlyn shook her head, staring at the mothership.

"I have no idea," she replied, honestly. "I just...I needed to clear my head."

Lisa was silent for a while; the two of them simply stared at the sky through the fence.

"Tyler told me the two of you made up last night." Lisa pointed out, turning sideways to shoot Kaitlyn a small smile. "That's good news, isn't it?"

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes. "It was, up until an hour ago."

"What happened an hour ago?"

Kaitlyn suddenly felt awkward. Here she was, alone with her big brother's girlfriend who he thought the _world_ of, and she was actually thinking of bad-mouthing him. Kaitlyn bit her lip; no, that would be wrong. But then, she felt so _desperate _to talk to someone, _anyone_, even Lisa seemed an okay candidate. Besides, she'd asked, hadn't she? And in Kaitlyn's mind, it didn't matter if _any_ of it got back to Tyler. _Let_ him know she was mad at him.

"Did he tell _you_ about the Live-Aboard Program?" Kaitlyn wanted to know.

Lisa shrugged with a sly smile. "Actually...I'm the one who told _him_ about it."

Kaitlyn turned, wide-eyed.

"_You_ did?" She paused. "Why?"

Lisa was silent for a while before she spoke again. "Listen, I spend a lot of time with Tyler, you know that. He speaks of you and your mother in the most amazing way. He cares so much about you, Kaitlyn."

Kaitlyn interrupted her with a scoff. "Yeah, right."

"It hurts him deeply, not having his father around. You know, he feels a great deal of responsibility toward you, he feels it would be a difficult thing, leaving you behind, but he's torn; the animosity between him and your mother is a lot for him. He loves her very much, but he doesn't feel he can live with her right now. Kaitlyn, have you ever heard the phrase 'absence makes the heart grow fonder?"

Kaitlyn nodded.

"If it helps, this was a tough decision for him to make. I don't want you to think he wants to leave because of you, or because of your mother. He wants nothing more than for things to be resolved, and maybe with Tyler on the mothership, there's more of a chance for reconciliation to happen between your brother and your mother." Lisa sighed. "I think he just needs time to sort everything out, you know, on his own."

Hearing it like that made Kaitlyn realized there was more to Tyler's decision than just teenage angst and rebellion. Was Lisa for real? Was Tyler actually torn about making a decision like this? When he'd first told her, all Kaitlyn felt was abandonment; all she could think was that Tyler didn't care, didn't want anything to do with his family, that he was no better than their father.

But then...if he didn't care about her, then why had he shut down entirely out of guilt when she'd been hit by that car?

Kaitlyn swallowed. Now, _she_ was the one weighed down with guilt. She sighed.

"I...I got mad at him. I screamed at him, and ran off." Kaitlyn lowered her head. "I...I told him he was just like dad."

She felt Lisa's hand on her shoulder.

"He'll forgive you, Kaitlyn. He loves you." She was silent for a moment. "Does your mother know where you are?"

Kaitlyn blushed, thinking of her phone that had been ringing off the hook for the last hour. "No."

"Maybe you should call her." Lisa gave Kaitlyn's shoulder a squeeze. "Things will look up, Kaitlyn. It may not seem like it right now, because you're angry, but remember: no matter where Tyler goes, you're still his little sister."

Kaitlyn couldn't help but smile, as she meet Lisa's eyes.

"Thanks Lisa," she muttered. Lisa smiled back and turned to leave. Kaitlyn watched after her, sighing deeply before she finally pulled out her cell phone and texted a message to her mother.

_Coming home now._

* * *

When Kaitlyn sauntered up her driveway fifteen minutes later, she noticed Tyler's bike was gone. Guilt bit hard at her again, but maybe it was okay he wasn't here, for now. The fight was still fresh in her mind, and maybe she wasn't quite ready to apologize yet. After all, she still had her pride. Besides, her mother's returned text sounded less than impressed, there would be a blowout, and the last thing Kaitlyn wanted was for Tyler to be around for that. Kaitlyn was usually the good kid; she hardly ever got into trouble.

So much for that.

Kaitlyn let herself in the house, and literally counted only two seconds before she heard the booming footsteps from the kitchen. Kaitlyn sighed as her mother rounded the corner.

"Kaitlyn Beverly Evans! Where the _hell_ have you been?" Erica yelled.

Suddenly, all Kaitlyn wanted to do was cry.

"I just...I just needed to get out of here, go for a walk," she muttered, biting hard on her lip without meeting her mother's eye.

"What is the point of giving the two of you cell phones if you aren't going to _answer_ them?" Erica went on, seemingly exasperated.

"I wanted to be alone."

"That's fine, Kaitlyn, but _tell_ me, tell _someone_!" Erica's hand went to her head. "I can't take this from you, Kaiti, I _can't_, alright? It's bad enough trying to keep tabs on Tyler, but I don't have the energy to have to worry about both of you!"

"Mom, you don't have to, I just couldn't be here, okay? I'll call next time, I'm sorry." Kaitlyn looked down and crunched up her face, hoping it would stop the sudden need to release tears.

She expected more yelling, but instead, silence. Then, her mother stepped forward, put a finger under Kaitlyn's chin, forcing her to meet her eyes.

"Baby, you know the reason I worry so much is because I love you so much, right?" Erica couldn't look any more serious. "Last night...Kaitlyn, when I didn't know if you were okay, or not...I can't describe that to you. You and Tyler are my life, got it? When I don't know where you are, or if you're safe..." She couldn't finish, and that was when Kaitlyn's tears fell freely, and she fell into her mother's open arms.

"I'm sorry, mom."

"It's okay, baby." Erica stroked her daughter's hair. "I understand things are hard for you right now. Just...promise me you'll let me know what you're doing, where you are. Honey, I don't know what I would do if I ever lost you, or Tyler."

Kaitlyn sniffed, and pulled away from her mom so she could look at her.

She managed a nod. "I promise."

Erica gathered Kaitlyn in her arms once again with a smile. Kaitlyn couldn't control her tears, not anymore. It was all too much.

"I'm right here, Kaiti-B," Erica soothed. "We'll get through this. Somehow, we'll come out on top."


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter Twenty**

Today was the day. Today was the day Erica was going to cut off all ties the V's had on her children.

Ryan had called her late last night to inform her he finally found a way to reverse the effects of the R6 in Kaitlyn. He found a doctor, a Dr. Leah Pearlman who, like Ryan, was a rebel Visitor, and had a procedure to remove R6 from human beings. Erica was taking Kaitlyn this morning. The only thing she hadn't been able to figure out, yet, was what she was going to tell Kaitlyn. No, she couldn't tell her 13-year-old daughter that the Visitors were dangerous; that could be putting her daughter at risk, but she had to get that R6 out of her body. She'd think of something, she still had another errand to run first.

Tyler wanted to live on the mothership, and Erica had to do something to stop that from happening. She'd been on the phone all morning making plans. She would do whatever it took to keep Tyler from getting that close to the Visitors, from going that far from Erica. As a mother, Erica knew sacrifices had to be made if it meant protecting your children, and the only way Erica could see a way to keep Tyler from the V's was through a means she wished she could avoid.

Sacrifices.

"Come on guys, we gotta go!" Erica called for the second time that morning, checking her watch. She'd told Tyler and Kaitlyn they were going shopping for clothes, a lie even she was surprised her kids bought. Kaitlyn had been more than agreeable, but that was typical Kaitlyn. Tyler put up a bit of a fight, but after some sweet talk from Kaitlyn, Tyler agreed, albeit begrudgingly.

Good thing he did; this wouldn't have worked, otherwise.

"Shotgun!" Kaitlyn cried as she barrelled down the stairs, trailed by her brother, who was trying to catch her, a grin across his face. Erica smiled to herself; at least he hadn't distanced himself from his sister. Yes, it broke her own heart that her son kept himself so far away from her, but at least he still doted on Kaitlyn. Erica could only hope her son would come around in his own time, warm right back up to his mother and be the son that had always stolen her heart.

Erica grabbed her keys and, after making sure she had the address for Leah Pearlman, headed out the front door after her children.

* * *

"Uh, mom?" Kaitlyn said about ten minutes into the car ride. "This isn't the way to the mall."

Erica's heart thumped; great, they were on to her already. Well, who was she kidding? She knew she wouldn't be able to evade her children's suspiscions forever. After all, they weren't five anymore.

"Just have to make a quick stop, Kaiti-B," Erica said cryptically, hoping Kaitlyn would accept it at surface level. Yeah right. Erica didn't even have to look sideways at her precocious daughter; Kaitlyn knew something was up.

Still, she didn't say anything. That was the nice thing about Kaitlyn; she was still young enough to trust her mother completely. _Oh Tyler, how I wish you still did._

Tyler and Kaitlyn continued with their playful bickering as Erica turned off the highway and headed toward her destination. She knew Kaitlyn and Tyler wouldn't recognize the route; they'd never been here before. After all, it hadn't been that long...

Though it felt like an eternity apart already.

She spotted the house, the same address he'd told her over the phone, and Erica's stomach sank. Sacrifices, she reminded herself. If this worked, she would keep Tyler far away from the mothership, but the cost that came along with it broke her heart.

"Okay guys." Erica's voice softened. "I lied about the mall."

That caught her kid's attention.

But before either of them could ask why, the front door to the house Erica parked in front of opened and Erica could feel nerves take control of her hands as she gripped the wheel to keep them from shaking. There he was; Joe, her ex-husband, and the father to her children.

"Dad?" Tyler asked incredulously, staring out the window. He was grinning from ear to ear. "What's going on?"

Erica sighed, forced a smile. "I thought you guys could use a visit with your dad, so here we are."

Tyler's smile was reward enough, and he flew out of the car, and up the front lawn to engulf his father in a hug. Erica fought back tears, this was going to be so hard. And the rough part hadn't even come yet.

Erica cleared her throat, looked over to see Kaitlyn still in the car, staring out the window, but not moving.

"Come on, Kaiti, let's go see your dad," Erica said, unbuckling her seatbelt.

"No," Kaitlyn said quietly. Erica stopped, puckered her brow.

"What?"

Kaitlyn's eyes fell to her lap. "I'm not going."

"Honey, we-"

"I just want to stay in the car, okay?" Kaitlyn's voice was almost inaudible, and she was on the verge of tears. Erica was torn; she had to go talk to Joe and Tyler if her plan was going to work, but she didn't want to leave her upset daughter alone in the car either.

But for now, she would have to; she would _not_ allow Tyler on that mothership as long as she could help it.

"Are you sure, baby?" Erica asked. Kaitlyn simply nodded.

Erica leaned over, kissed Kaitlyn's head. "I'll be back as soon as I can, okay? Then we can talk."

As Erica exited the car, she was sure she heard Kaitlyn murmur, "don't wanna talk."

* * *

Twenty minutes had gone by and Kaitlyn tried to ignore what sounded like her dad and Tyler laughing in what would be her father's backyard. She didn't hear her mother, but she always did have a quiet laugh, not like the men in her family, who boomed like an earthquake when they laughed.

_Yeah, rub it in my face; everybody's happy but me_, Kaitlyn bitterly thought as she leaned up against the seat, wishing Tyler and her mother would hurry the heck up.

What a shock it had been when her mother had pulled up in front of her father's house, when she'd seen him, just as she remembered him, standing on the front porch. Kaitlyn couldn't help but wonder how he felt when Kaitlyn stayed in the car while the rest of them had their happy reunion.

She didn't care; what did she owe him? He left her family like they didn't matter, and how many times had he visited them, called them since he took off? Tyler was so naive; he ran to their dad like he wasn't the one responsible for all disarray their family had crumbled into. No, Kaitlyn didn't want to see him. It was bad enough having to deal with all the memories that flooded over her when she saw him standing there; like when he used to swing her around in their front lawn with the sprinklers on when she was four, or when he taught her and Tyler how to fish down at the lake, and how she'd cried for hours because he stuck a worm on a hook, and the whole fishing trip was cancelled because she wanted her mama. Tyler hadn't talked to her for a week, so mad that they never got to learn how to fish, not like their dad didn't take Tyler anyway. Or how he used to read a chapter from 'Stuart Little', her favourite childhood book, _every_ night, and only he could do it because her mother wouldn't do the voices like he could.

But the father who left her wasn't the same man who'd done all those things. That man was gone.

Finally, Kaitlyn peered out the window and saw Erica coming toward the car. Tyler wasn't with her. Great; Erica was probably coming to either tell Kaitlyn to get inside, or to see how she was doing, but it didn't look like they were going to leave anytime soon. Otherwise, Tyler would be here, and they'd all go home.

But Erica got in the car, and her ears were glazed. She'd been crying.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Kaitlyn asked, suddenly forgetting her own anger toward her father, her own pain. Erica cleared her throat and put on that strong face Kaitlyn could see right through. What was going on?

"Honey," Erica started. "Tyler...he's not coming home with us."

Kaitlyn's stomach sank. "What?"

"He's...he's going to stay with your dad for a while." Erica started the car, obviously ready to leave it all behind her. "I'm going to bring some of his stuff later." She began putting the car into drive, but Kaitlyn's hand caught her mother's. Fighting back tears, Kaitlyn glared hard at her mother.

"Why?" Kaitlyn wanted to know. But Erica's pat answer of 'Tyler chose to' didn't convince Kaitlyn one bit. As Erica pulled into traffic and headed off, Kaitlyn began to piece it all together. Why now? Why after months of being apart did Erica choose _today_ to bring her kids to their father's for a visit? No, it was no coincidence. Tyler announcing his decision to move aboard the mothership, and now a sudden decision to move in with his father. This had all been planned. Erica must have called their father ahead of time and staged a visit so that Tyler would be faced with this decision.

Well of course Tyler would choose to stay with their dad. Their dad was Ty's hero, and with all the conflict happening between Tyler and their mother, it was no wonder.

But it _did_ come as a surprise that Tyler opted for their father over the mothership. Maybe Erica was in the right here; keeping Tyler off the mothership was a good thing, but as Erica drove down the street, Kaitlyn turned and stared out the back window, feeling tears bite at her eyes. She felt the separation like a dull ache in her gut. Just when she thought her family couldn't be any more dysfunctional, now she was losing her brother.

How much worse were things going to get?


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter Twenty One**

Erica was glad she had another stop to make; leaving Tyler at his father's house, knowing he would not be coming home that night, well, it just _killed_ her. But her plan had worked, hadn't it? She'd done it so Tyler wouldn't move onboard the mothership, and now, he wasn't.

So why did she feel so terrible?

Erica glanced over at her silent daughter from time to time, noticing the girl hadn't so much as said a word since they left Joe's. Erica knew this was killing her daughter as much as it was killing her, but maybe it was worse for Kaitlyn. After all; Kaitlyn didn't know the _why_ of Tyler's sudden moving out. She couldn't understand the great sacrifice it required of their family. The Visitors were dangerous; Erica would walk on _fire_ before she released either of her children into the V's clutches.

Exactly the reason they were headed to Dr. Pearlman.

Ryan would meet them there, and that was something Erica was still trying to figure out in her mind. Yes, Ryan planned to be there as the official mediator, so Dr. Leah Pearlman wouldn't be suspiscious of Erica, since, after all, she was a rebel Visitor. Any trace back to her and what she would do for Kaitlyn would incriminate her. Still, Kaitlyn was too smart for her own good; what would she tell Kaitlyn?

Nothing. What could she tell her?

Besides, Kaitlyn hardly seemed like she'd be suspiscious. She was still thinking about Tyler.

Well, so was Erica.

"Aren't we going home?" Kaitlyn asked after a few minutes, noticing Erica was taking a different way. Erica swallowed. _Here we go._

"No, sweetie, we have to make a quick stop first."

"Where?"

"Well," Erica started. _Lie, and lie quick_. "There's a specialist I'm taking to you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, baby girl, but I just to have you checked out by a doctor after your accident."

"But mom, I'm okay," Kaitlyn protested.

"You're probably right, honey, but I'm a mom; I worry about these things until all my basis are covered." Erica flashed her daughter a smile. "If I get a clean bill of health from this doctor, I'll admit you were right and buy you an ice cream, how's that?"

Erica caught a hint of a smile.

"Fine, but I don't understand why I have to see a _specialist_." Kaitlyn whined. "Why can't we just go to my regular doctor?"

"He's out of town." Erica lied. Kaitlyn didn't press the matter, thankfully. Erica was already on edge; coming up with lies for the rest of the afternoon would not come easily.

They pulled into the clinic's parking lot, and as they did, Erica felt her phone buzz. She checked it subtly and saw it was a text from Ryan.

_Filled Pearlman in on K and the R6. She will stage a routine check up._

Erica breathed out. Good. Kaitlyn needed to believe this was a simple check up, nothing about Visitor fluid running through her veins keeping track of her every movement. Erica made sure she had her gun strapped to her belt; if the V's could really track Kaitlyn's movements, then they might know she was here, and they might come to stop it from happening.

Well, Ryan would have known if that would happen. He was the eyes and ears behind all Visitor activity.

Erica watched Kaitlyn closely as they entered the clinic, as they signed in, as they sat in the waiting room. It was all a show; there would be no other patients, even the receptionist was a ruse. Still, Erica didn't see any signs of suspiscion in Kaitlyn's eyes as they waited. Erica felt relieved; she couldn't pull Kaitlyn into all of this, the real reasons they were here. It was too much.

"Kaitlyn Evans?" a woman called from down the hall. Erica stood with Kaitlyn and they followed the sound of the voice. Kaitlyn was still so quiet; it was everything Erica could do to keep herself from spilling the beans, telling Kaitlyn everything.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Pearlman." A young woman with a mass of curly hair greeted them when they entered the room. Erica's stomach sank, because her eyes didn't rest on Pearlman, but on Ryan, who was standing in the corner of the room, eyes crossed. _Ryan, what the hell are you still doing here?_ Erica caught Kaitlyn's expression; she also wondered who this guy was.

"This is my assistant, Ryan." Dr. Pearlman said, as though reading Erica's mind. "Don't you worry about him being here, Kaitlyn. All he does is take notes for me. Gets my job done quicker." Pearlman shot Kaitlyn a smile and patted the examining table for Kaitlyn to hop onto. As Kaitlyn followed the doctor's instructions, Erica shot a glance at Ryan. She would give him so much heck for being here! If Kaitlyn really let her mind wrap itself around all of this, her suspiscions would be through the roof. Kaitlyn was too smart a kid to think doctors just had random guys taking notes for them.

"I heard you were in an accident," Pearlman said as she pulled out a stethoscope, motioned for Kaitlyn to take some deep breaths. "I guess your mom's been awful worried, huh?"

Kaitlyn merely nodded, smiling ever so slightly at her mother, who waited by the door, wondering how in the world this doctor planned on extracting R6 from her daughter without causing suspiscion.

Dr. Pearlman checked Kaitlyn's heart, her blood pressure, her eyes, her reflexes, anything a normal doctor would do in a routine checkup. Erica's heart was hammering; sure it all seemed innocent enough, but Erica wasn't interested in the routine checkup.

"Kaitlyn, have you experienced nausea of any kind since the accident?" Dr. Pearlman asked.

Kaitlyn shook her head.

"Dizziness?"

"No."

"Headaches?"

"Not really."

"Any sore muscles?"

Another shake of the head.

"Well, then my diagnosis is that you're a very lucky young lady." Dr. Pearlman smiled. "But I'm going to give you a shot to counteract any of these symptoms. It's not uncommon for headaches and dizziness to manifest itself even a few days after an accident of that magnitude. This shot will fight against that, and then you can keep living your life as though nothing happened."

Erica watched for a reaction, but Kaitlyn only bit her lip in submission. Erica almost breathed a sigh of relief. Whatever that shot was, it had to be what would counteract the R6. Finally, they'd be home free.

Kaitlyn was silent while Dr. Pearlman prepared a syringe with a clear blue bubbly liquid, and only wrinkled her nose slightly when the needle pierced her skin. Erica flashed her brave daughter a smile and only glanced at Ryan, who gave her a curt nod. Erica couldn't help but feel relieved; the Visitors might have numbers and technology on their side, but for today, that didn't matter.

Her children were safe from their monstrosity, at least for another day.

* * *

As Erica and Kaitlyn left the doctor's office, Kaitlyn glancing ever so slightly at the tiny pin prick on her arm, she gave a little sigh and glanced at her mother.

"I told you so," Kaitlyn pointed out. "I believe you owe me an ice cream."


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty Two**

Her mother was certainly up to something.

Kaitlyn sat in front of her computer, home alone once again, thinking over the events of the day. After her mother bought Kaitlyn the promised ice cream, she dropped her daughter off at home, and then took off quickly after receiving an urgent text she wouldn't tell Kaitlyn about.

Well, that was fine. It gave Kaitlyn time to think.

Something was going on, and it was big!

Pieces were beginning to fit together for Kaitlyn. Something was definitely going on with her mother, and Kaitlyn was beginning to believe it had something to do with the Visitors.

First, there was that look on her mother's face when Kaitlyn was in the healing centre. Sure, Kaitlyn had just survived a freak car accident, so she had every right to appear concerned, but it was more than that. It was a look of absolute disgust any time Kaitlyn mentioned the Visitors. No, it was no secret. Her mother detested the Visitors. In fact, Erica never seemed to hide the fact that she was suspiscious of the Visitors from the beginning. She hated Tyler's involvement with them, and always had.

_That_ was where Kaitlyn's father came in!

Convenient timing, wasn't it? Tyler announcing his desire to move aboard the mothership for the Live Aboard Program, and _now_, Erica wanted her children to spend more time with their father? And if that were true, why didn't Erica try convincing Kaitlyn to stay? No, this wasn't about Kaitlyn, not at all. Erica contacted Joe for the sole purpose of luring Tyler to stay on earth!

And it had worked!

Kaitlyn wanted to kick something. Did her mother actually expect to keep this a secret from her?

_Then_ there was that whole business at the 'specialist's' office. First of all, what kind of doctor specialized in post-car crash cases? And Kaitlyn had been searching google for the last hour, and so far, she hadn't been able to find a single webpage about any injection created for post-car-crash symptoms. So what had that doctor stabbed her with? _And_, Erica blatantly lied to Kaitlyn; she'd told her the family doctor was out of town. That wasn't true; Kaitlyn just got off the phone with them. He'd been there all week.

And who was that big black guy? What kind of medical assistant hovered in corners to take notes? Besides, he wasn't wearing scrubs or anything. Not to mention he kept shooting Erica significant glances, and Erica didn't seem all that shocked. Kaitlyn couldn't prove anything, but she had a feeling Erica had met Ryan before, but where?

Sure, Kaitlyn didn't have it all figured out, but here was what she knew for sure: Erica hated the Visitors, so much that she manipulated her children in order to kep Tyler grounded and make him think it was his idea. But why? What was going on? Did Erica know something about the Visitors she wasn't telling her children?

Erica always went on and on about how her kids could talk to her about anything. Well, good, because Kaitlyn was going to get to the bottom of this. Yes, as soon as her mother walked through those doors, she was going to get her to tell her the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

This family was already falling apart; they didn't need secrets between them to do any further damage.

* * *

A few hours passed, and Kaitlyn was getting bored of the same old stuff showing on TV. It seemed like everyone was still showing footage of the amazing Visitors. Big deal, what _else_ was going on in the world? It was like nobody even cared anymore.

It was past dinner time. Kaitlyn hadn't eaten; she wasn't feeling very hungry and besides, who wanted to eat alone? When the heck was her mother coming home?

As though thinking about it materialized her right from thin air, Erica Evans strode through the front door. Kaitlyn killed the television; now, she would have her mother's full attention. She would find out what was going on with her, her motives behind Tyler's moving out, the guy at the random specialist's office, _all_ of it, she would figure it out tonight.

But then she saw her mother. She looked as though something terrible had happened.

"Mom?" Kaitlyn said when Erica meandered into the living room. "What's the matter?"

Erica looked up as though she didn't even realize her daughter was sharing the same space as her. Erica quickly caught herself, and flashed a smile that Kaitlyn knew was faked without even batting an eye.

"Nothing, baby, just a long day." She didn't wait around for any follow-up questions; she simply retired into the kitchen. Kaitlyn sighed - so much for getting to the bottom of all of this. Maybe tomorrow. She didn't have the heart to harrass her mother, not when it was obvious she was tired, or upset about something. _Probably Tyler..._

A tear stung her eye as she thought of her big brother, no longer living in the same house. She suddenly felt that much lonelier.

Then the doorbell rang.

Kaitlyn sighed, rising from the sofa and making her way toward the front door. It wasn't like her mother even budged from the kitchen.

Kaitlyn found Lisa on the other side of the front door, and it stung just seeing her; she was here for Tyler.

Lisa was all smiles. "Hi Kaitlyn. How are you feeling?"

Right. The accident. Even that felt like one giant blur.

"Uh, fine." Kaitlyn rubbed her eyes under her glasses. "Uh Lisa, you should probably know Tyler's not here."

"Oh, is he out?"

"Yeah, he..." Kaitlyn swallowed. This was harder than she thought it would be. "He's at my dad's. And...well, he's gonna be staying there for a while."

Her stomach sank as she said it; she knew it was truth, but there was something about acknowledgeing it with words that made it feel twenty times more real.

"Oh." Lisa seemed stuck for what to say next. "Well, um, where does your father live?"

Kaitlyn hesitated. Lisa was a Visitor, that much they knew was true, and if Kaitlyn's theory was correct, then her mother's whole plan for getting Tyler to move in with their father was to get him _away_ from the Visitors.

And that meant away from Lisa.

So Kaitlyn felt torn. On the one hand, she could tell Lisa she didn't know, or didn't think it was a good idea to let her know, and in turn be respecting her own mother's wishes, if that was in fact what they were, but on the other hand, Kaitlyn loved her brother, and Lisa was his whole world right now. Lisa meant the world to Tyler, and it would mean so much to him if Lisa showed up on his front door step.

How could Kaitlyn stand in the way of making her brother happy, even just for one evening?

She sighed.

"42 Millicent Court," she said, looking down. "Off Third and Elm."

"Thanks, Kaitlyn." Lisa smiled. "Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead." Kaitlyn couldn't believe how tired she felt all of a sudden.

"Why aren't you at your father's house?" Lisa wanted to know.

Kaitlyn felt her chest seize. All the hurt, all the emotions she'd been keeping to herself were rising to the surface. Someone was here, someone was actually creating a window of opportunity for her to let that all out. It wasn't like her mother exactly had the time to listen to her, and besides that, Erica was too caught up in her own emotions about the whole thing to listen to Kaitlyn. How could Kaitlyn talk to her mother about how angry the whole thing made her, how abandoned she felt?

But here was Lisa, someone who seemed genuinely concerned, ready to listen, ready to care.

Kaitlyn couldn't help but feel drawn in to that.

"It's kind of complicated," she started. "I mean, we drove up to my dad's, not knowing that's where we were going, and all of a sudden, my dad invited Tyler to stay with him. I'm not an idiot, though. I think my mom planned it that way. She counted on my dad asking Tyler to stay, and I don't know why, I just know he stayed."

"But why didn't _you_ stay?" Lisa asked in a soft voice.

Kaitlyn heard a bitter laugh erupt from her throat.

"He didn't bother to invite me. I stayed in the car anyway. He could have come out and seen me, said hi, invited _me_ to stay. I wouldn't have anyway. Besides, he wouldn't have even bothered inviting me. He doesn't care about me. If he did, he-" Kaitlyn swallowed, unable to finish that sentence. At least, not out loud. _...he wouldn't have left me._

"Anyway, I don't care. I haven't gotten along with my dad since the divorce." She sighed. "So it's better that I'm here."

Kaitlyn felt tears piercing her eyes and she looked down, letting her chestnut hair fall into her eyes. She saw Lisa's feet moving forward. A gentle hand rested on her shoulder, and Kaitlyn forced herself to look up, meet Lisa's eyes.

"I think you care more than you think you do." Lisa smiled gently. "Don't you?"

That did it. Kaitlyn had tried to keep the tears at bay, but it did no good. Before she knew it, she felt tears streaming down her face. Lisa stepped forward and collected Kaitlyn into her arms, holding her close. Kaitlyn couldn't help but cry, couldn't help but feel a sense of relief at having someone listen to her.

"Kaiti?"

It was a third voice.

Her mother.

Kaitlyn stepped away from Lisa quickly, ripped off her glasses and scrubbed her eyes on her sleeve. Great.

"You okay, baby?" Erica approached the two, suddenly looking worried. Before Kaitlyn could respond, Lisa stepped forward.

"I think Kaitlyn just misses her brother, Mrs. Evans. I'm sure he misses you both too." Lisa flashed her winning smile. "I'll see myself out."

As Lisa walked away, Kaitlyn couldn't help but feel hot with embarrassment, anger and frustration. When Lisa was gone, Erica looked at her daughter seriously.

"What was that about? What's the matter?"

"Nothing."

"Kaitlyn, two seconds ago, you were crying. That's not nothing." Erica put a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Talk to me."

Feeling all kinds of inner angst and confusion over her mother's possible role in Tyler's moving out, and all the unanswered questions, Kaitlyn couldn't help but pull away.

"I'm _fine_, mom." She spat. "I'm just tired."

It seemed to take all the energy in the world just to get that out without screaming. She was _so_ angry, and as she stormed up to her bedroom, and not hearing any footsteps trailing her, she was glad that, at least for tonight, her mother had decided to let her be.

Besides, the way Erica looked when she first got home, Kaitlyn would be stupid if she didn't admit something more was going on, and it wasn't just about work. Erica was always good about not letting herself get drawn into work so much that it affected her emotions, so whatever happened was bigger than the FBI.

And, Kaitlyn had a feeling, bigger than Tyler leaving home.

What was her mother involved with? And why was she keeping it a secret?


	23. Chapter 23

_A/N: Hey all, so sorry this has taken forever and a day to get up. Life has been super busy. The good news - I just signed a book deal. A novel I wrote is getting published in March 2012 and I've been busy with editors and publishers to get it ready. But my plan is to continue writing fan fiction for sure. :)_

**Chapter Twenty Three**

Erica woke up feeling groggy the next morning. Honestly, she doubted she'd had a wink of sleep. So much plagued her mind. First, the house felt so incomplete without her son. As much as she and Tyler were at odds half the time, she still missed him. How could she not? She was his mother, after all.

But then there was all the terrible news that came out of yesterday. Georgie, captured by the Visitors, most likely dead, now. Erica couldn't help but blame herself; she had been so busy focused on protecting her kids from the Visitors that she didn't even know Georgie was planning on getting on the mothership. Whatever his plans were, they failed, and he was taken by them.

By now, the Visitors must have figured out he was part of the resistance, maybe tortured answers out of him. Erica couldn't help but wonder if he'd divulged names under torture. Was she in danger? What about Ryan, Father Jack, Hobbes?

What about her children?

But Ryan was adament that the Visitors didn't, _couldn't_, know about them. He had a good point: if the Visitors knew about a potential resistance, they would all be dead by now.

Yet here they were, all still breathing.

Still, Erica wasn't about to take for granted her safety. They were in the middle of a war; she had to be on her toes.

As she crawled out of bed, threw on some clothes, she heard the phone ring. She groaned; who was calling at this hour?

"Hello?" Erica answered as she slipped into some jeans.

"Erica, it's me."

Joe, her ex-husband.

"Joe, it's so early, why are you calling? Is something wrong with Tyler?" Erica couldn't help but feel a pang of worry as she waited for her ex to answer her question.

"Look, Erica, I think you should know. Ty's girlfriend, that Lisa girl? She, uh, spent the night here last night."

Erica's stomach dropped. Lisa was a Visitor. Damn! So much for keeping Tyler preoccupied.

"Why didn't you send her home, Joe?" Erica asked, her voice laced with anger as she tied a shoe. "He's 17! He shouldn't have girls spending the night!"

"She slept on the couch!"

"That doesn't matter!" Because it was more than just a girl spending the night. It was a Visitor! "Are you really calling just to tell me this, Joe? You're capable of being a parent too!"

"Am I?" Joe's voice had changed. "Look, Erica, the real reason I called is because I need to talk to you."

Erica's stomach dropped. His voice had that serious edge to it. Something was going on.

"What is it, Joe?"

Her question was met with a heavy sigh.

"Erica." He paused. "I think Tyler needs to know I'm not his father."

Erica's stomach churned! No! Not this, not again!

"Joe, how many times do I have to tell you? What they found in Tyler's blood was a mistake-"

"Doctors don't make mistakes like that, Erica."

"Joe, there's never been anyone else!"

"Save it, Erica! I don't need to listen to these lies anymore. That's why I left, remember?" Joe stopped for a moment, trying to compose himself. "I think Tyler has the right to know. Kaitlyn too."

"No, Joe, this isn't the right time." Erica clawed at her eyes, feeling every muscle tense at the thought of her children knowing this. "Just...let's think about this for a while, okay? Can we talk later?"

Joe sighed again. "Whatever you say, Erica."

The line went dead.

Erica fell on her bed, grasped her hair in her hands and wanted to scream! Joe was Tyler's father, he _was_! There was no other option! Yes, she had been there last year, when Tyler had been in that horrible bike wreck, and needed blood. She'd been there when both her and Joe donated blood, only to find out Tyler's and Joe's DNA didn't match. They weren't related.

Erica chalked it up to a mix-up. There was no other explanation. She hadn't been with anything but Joe, but Joe let his emotions take over. He convinced himself until he was blue in the face that he'd been cheated on, and without even sticking around to talk about it, he left. He left Erica as a single mother with two confused teenage children.

Now, it was all coming to the surface again. Erica felt her stomach tighten. Joe would keep it to himself, for now, but how much longer before Tyler got wind of this information?

Worse; how would she ever be able to convince her estranged son that it was all a lie?

* * *

Kaitlyn was already bored, and it wasn't even noon yet. Her mother took off for work a few hours ago, even though it _was_ a Sunday. No Tyler, no mother.

Story of her life.

Even the computer was boring. Scoping out the latest news stories always brought her back to the Visitors, and that news was so old now. Besides, who even cared anymore?

Well, Tyler, Freddie, the whole world!

Ugh.

Kaitlyn resigned herself to playing a round of Bejeweled when her cell phone rang.

She answered, confused. Nobody ever called her cell.

"Hello?"

"Kaiti, it's me."

Tyler.

Kaitlyn couldn't help but feel herself warming to the sound of his voice.

"Hi Ty, what's up?" she asked, a little too obvious in her excitement. "And why're you calling me on the cell?"

"I, uh, I didn't want to talk to mom," Tyler admitted truthfully.

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes. _Of course._ "Well, she's not even here. She left early this morning for some FBI thing. So you _could_ have called the house."

"You don't understand, I needed to be sure I'd talk to you, not _her!_" Tyler sighed. "Look, Kaiti, I really need to talk to you. Can you meet me somewhere?"

Kaitlyn swallowed. Tyler _never_ wanted to talk, not about anything serious. He usually got all awkwarded out when it came to serious stuff, like emotions and stuff. His voice sounded exhausted, though, like something was really plaguing him. Kaitlyn couldn't help but want to do everything she could to help him.

"Yeah, I can meet you." She turned off her computer. "Where?"

"Behind the high school, in half an hour."

"Ty?"

"What?"

"Is something wrong?" Kaitlyn knew there was. "You kinda sound like you've been crying."

There was an excruciating silence, one that seemed to suck all the happiness out of Kaitlyn's space. She knew - she knew whatever he had to tell her was going to change things, change them forever. She felt herself deflate before even hearing what he was going to tell her.

"Just meet me at the high school. And Kaiti?" He breathed out. "Don't tell mom."

* * *

Kaitlyn rode her bike, wanting to get there was quickly as she could. There had only been a few times in her life that she'd heard Tyler so upset. Usually, at least lately, his default emotion was anger, but that wasn't what she heard over the phone. What she heard was a broken guy, voice cracking and everything. Something was really wrong. Tyler _never_ showed his emotion, and more than that, he _never_ showed emotion to Kaitlyn!

Kaitlyn rode faster.

She didn't bother leaving a note; it wasn't like her mother would be home anytime soon anyway, and besides, Tyler was very adament about the secrecy of this conversation. She had her phone with her; if her mother got home, she could call her. But right now, her mother was the _last_ thing on Kaitlyn's mind.

She arrived at the high school and dropped her bike, not even bothering to lock it up or anything. She saw Tyler's motorcycle already parked, so she ran around the building and found her brother, perched on a railing, alone and man, did he look down.

Kaitlyn approached him slowly, feeling almost awkward. It wasn't like she knew what to do. She was the little sister; what did she know about taking care of her brother? It wasn't like he ever let her.

"Hey Ty," she tried, approaching carefully as she leaned against the rail. "S-sorry I'm a bit late."

Tyler didn't say anything. He just continued to stare at the pavement below as though he could see some dark abyss underneath the concrete. Kaitlyn swallowed. Whatever this was, it was _big_!

"Ty, what's wrong? I...I've never heard you so upset befo-"

"Did you know?" Tyler suddenly snapped, looking at her with vicious eyes. Kaitlyn's stomach dropped.

"What?"

"Do you know about dad? Do you know the truth? Does _everybody_ know the truth but me?"

"Tyler, what are you talking about?" Kaitlyn's stomach was lurching now. What did he know? What did he find out?

Tyler considered her for a moment, as though wondering whether or not he should believe her. He breathed out and hung his head again.

"Kaiti, I found out something this morning," he admitted quietly.

"W-what?" Kaitlyn's heart was a jackhammer in her chest.

Tyler sniffed. _Sniffed!_

"Lisa overheard dad on the phone this morning. He...he was talking to mom." Tyler wiped at his eyes. "Dad...I mean, he's...he's not my father."

Kaitlyn felt her head spin, and she lowered herself down, needing to sit. She didn't say anything, but Tyler continued.

"He told mom how he thought they should tell me. That it shouldn't be a secret anymore." Tyler finally met Kaitlyn's eyes. "Kaiti, they've lied to us, _all_ these years! Dad's not my real father...and...that's why he left!"

Kaitlyn shook her head, felt her heart sinking lower and lower.

"No...that can't be true." Her stomach was knotting furiously inside of her. "He...he _has_ to be."

"Face reality, Kait!" Tyler yelled, tears still flowing from his eyes. "It's the truth, plain and simple."

"But..." Kaitlyn swallowed. "How...how could we not have known?"

"We didn't know because mom _lied_, Kaitlyn! She's not the perfect mother you _think_ she is!"

"Shut up, Ty!" Kaitlyn couldn't help but feel hot tears in her own eyes. "There's, there just has to be some kind of explanation here, okay?"

"Well, there isn't! Mom's nothing more than a liar, and it's her fault dad left, because he couldn't handle the truth that she slept with another-"

"Stop it, stop it!" Kaitlyn felt sobs erupting from her throat. "She's _not_ a liar! There's...there's something we're missing here."

"We're not missing anything! Mom's a liar! At least dad had the decency to tell me!"

"He didn't tell you! You said Lisa was eavesdropping and overheard the conversation!"

"Dad would have told me anyway."

"You think _he's_ so perfect?" Kaitlyn was yelling. "He kept this a secret too, Tyler! He's not as high and mighty as you think he is! At least mom stuck around for us. What did he do? He ran away!"

Tyler looked about to protest, to argue some more, but he stopped, fisted his hands and turned away, pacing. Kaitlyn's stomach was churning, tears streaming down her face. This was all too much, this was a lie, there _had_ to be some kind of miscommunication. Yes, their family was in shambles since their father left, but this? No, this would _ruin_ them.

It had to be a lie.

When Kaitlyn looked up, she saw Tyler fastening his bike helmet under his chin.

"T-Ty?" Kaitlyn scrubbed her eyes with her sleeve. "W-where are you going?"

Tyler sighed, refused to meet his sister's eyes. "I don't know. For a ride. I need to think some things out."

Kaitlyn didn't fight him, didn't beg him to stay like she so desperately wanted him to. Didn't ask him to hold her like she so desperately wanted. She knew how angry he was, and how the last thing he probably wanted to deal with was his tag-a-long little sister.

So instead, Kaitlyn just stared at her feet, bit her lip to keep from crying anymore.

But Tyler stopped in front of her before taking off.

"I just wanted you to know." He sniffed, stared off into the distance. "And Kaiti? M-maybe it's time you found out whether he's your dad too. Who knows how many lies mom has been keeping."

And before Kaitlyn could say a word, Tyler took off.

Kaitlyn, feeling alone in the world and ravaged from the inside out, sunk to her knees, and sobbed behind the school.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty Four**

Kaitlyn tried Freddie for the third time that evening, to no avail. It seemed anytime she called him, he was out. Worse, his own father didn't know where he was.

"He's been acting a little strange, lately," Freddie's father admitted the last time she tried calling.

_Yeah,_ Kaitlyn agreed as she hung up, _so's the whole world._

Lying down on her bed, crossing her arms over her chest, her eyes found the framed photograph of her mom, her brother and her, taken only months ago. Suddenly, Kaitlyn was very aware of the missing face in the photograph.

Was it really true? Was he really not Tyler's dad? Was he even _her_ dad?

_Daddy..._

She hastily brushed away a tear as she heard the front door open. She checked her watch, realized it was too early to be her mom. She'd still be working at the FBI.

Forcing herself to her feet, she went to her window, stole a peek outside and caught sight of her brother's motorcycle.

Tyler.

Feeling a rock forming in the pit of her gut, she knew why he was here without even having to ask him. He'd been riding around the city, stewing over the news Lisa had overheard, and now he was here, no doubt to confront their mother, desperate to hear the lie called out.

Kaitlyn felt tears forming in her eyes as she felt panic overwhelm her. She didn't want to stick around for the explosion. Tyler's and Erica's fights were always brutal, but this was going to be something entirely different. Kaitlyn didn't want to privy to this, no, not at all.

Fear seizing her insides, and pain tearing her up all over again, she forced down her tears, opened up her bedroom window, and crawled out without a sound.

* * *

Erica pulled into her driveway, feeling as though she had pushed down more tears than she should have. Dead, Georgie was dead. Confirmed only hours ago, by a source of Ryan's. The Visitor's killed him. Yes, they'd interrogated him first, but according to Ryan's source, Georgie had stayed strong to the end, refusing to give up his friends.

Erica stifled a sob as she turned off her car; the cause's first martyr.

At least she was home, now. At least she could run herself a hot bath, make herself some tea, and take a load off.

But there was Tyler, sitting in the dark on the bottom step when Erica walked in, glaring up at her with the worst kind of hatred in his eyes.

Erica's stomach plummeted. What had happened?

"Tyler," Erica said, closing the door behind her, turning on a light. "What are you doing here? I thought you were at your father's."

Tyler swallowed hard, his eyes fixed on his mother with steel behind his eyes. Erica couldn't help but steel herself.

Tyler didn't stand, didn't say anything for a few seconds. He just stared at his mother, and even though he glared at her with the worst kind of anger, Erica, a mother, could see past the rage to the hurt that was brewing inside of him. She wanted so badly to collect her little boy in her arms and hug away whatever was eating him up inside.

Finally, her son spoke. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Of course, Erica's mind reeled, reeled back to that morning's conversation with Joe. Joe had assured her Tyler hadn't heard the conversation, didn't know anything about Joe's doubts about Tyler. No, Tyler couldn't be asking about _that._

"Tell you what, Tyler?" Erica asked, still feeling an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Tyler lost it in that moment. He jumped up, and started to yell.

"All these years, mom! All these years, I thought he was my dad! And he's...how could you _lie_ to the _whole_ family, mom!"

Erica's insides turned to dust, her heart rattled in her chest. He knew, somehow, he'd found out. Had Joe told him? Had Tyler overheard the conversation? Had he stumbled across some document from his time in the hospital? Well, however he found out wasn't the issue anymore. He knew, and Erica felt panic seize her as she knew from the bottom of her heart she would never be able to convince her estranged son any differently.

"Tyler, where did you hear-"

"It doesn't matter, mom, you can't deny it anymore! I know the truth! Kaitlyn knows the truth! Yeah, I told her! Is he _her_ father, at least? Or are we both just bastards from guys you slept with when you were married?"

"Tyler Evans!" Erica found herself screaming, then stopped herself to take a breath. She had to be calm. She couldn't let her fear, her own anger, consume her. "I don't know how you found out about this, how you found out about the hospital records and the DNA tests, but Tyler, they're wrong."

"DNA tests can't be wrong, mom!"

"Yes, they can be." Erica sighed, feeling tears threatening her. "They have to be. Tyler, you have to believe me when I say there was only ever your father. There were no other men. You and Kaiti, you're mine and Joe's, together."

Tyler looked away with a roll of his eyes.

"Stop lying, mom!" he yelled. "Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell Kaitlyn? Why didn't you tell _us_?"

"Because there was nothing to tell you, Tyler!" Erica sucked in a breath. "This whole thing, it's a lie, it's a mistake. Joe, your father, he _is_ your father. He's Kaitlyn's father. He's _both_ of your father."

Silence ensued. Tyler never met his mother's eyes. He glared a hole into the carpet, shuffled as though unsure what to say, how to respond. Erica finally felt the tears run down her cheeks. Every day, she felt as though she were losing Tyler, more and more with every passing moment. Now this. No, she could not lose her son over something that wasn't true.

She stepped toward him, reached out, took his hands.

"Tyler," she said quietly. "You have to believe me. I'm telling you the truth, here."

But Tyler's eyes shot up, fire dancing behind them.

"You're a liar," he hissed, yanking his hands away, pushing past her. "Stop lying, mom!"

With that, he stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.

Erica felt her chest collapse, her eyes fill up with the tears she'd been trying to keep to herself. She felt emotion threaten to take her under. First Georgie, now all this with Tyler. Tyler was gone, she was losing him, maybe already lost him. It didn't seem to matter how many times she would tell him how much the hospital was wrong, how Joe was both of their father, no matter what the DNA said.

Erica wanted to collapse on the sofa, cry until her heart caved in, but she remembered something Tyler had said. _Kaitlyn knows the truth. Yeah, I told her._

Kaitlyn.

Erica took the stairs, two at a time. If she could talk to Kaitlyn, her little girl, the gem of her heart, convince _her_ that Joe was their father, there was hope. Kaitlyn and Tyler had a connection; if Kaitlyn believed her mother, she could convince Tyler. Maybe then, peace could be restored.

_Maybe..._

But when she pushed open her daughter's bedroom door, all she found was an empty room and an open window.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty Five**

Kaitlyn was cold. Walking through the park not far from home, this late at night and with the wind a merciless pain in the neck, Kaitlyn wished she had brought a jacket. But no, she hadn't thought of that; all she wanted was the escape, to be as far from her family as possible. She knew how angry Tyler was, how angry _she_ felt about the whole thing. No, she didn't want to hear the fight, didn't want her mother trying to talk to her later, didn't want to hear lies, or truth. In fact, she wasn't sure which she even preferred at this point.

The tears had all dried up now, leaving her face hot and pasty-feeling. Her eyes stung, her fingers stung from the cold, and even though her head told her to go home, her heart was broken, and home was the furthest place from her mind.

Her phone was buzzing relentlessly, had been for the last hour. It was her mother, texting, calling, leaving all kinds of messages. No doubt, Erica had discovered her daughter was missing, and was trying to find her. Kaitlyn felt guilty; no, she didn't want her mother to worry, but there was a part of her that just wanted to be left alone, at least until she could figure it all out.

Who did she belong to? Who _was_ she? Her whole life, she'd been Kaitlyn Beverly Evans, but now, she wasn't so sure. _Was_ she an Evans? If her father wasn't really her father, then who was? She tried to wrap her mind around it; nobody had ever said she looked like her dad, maybe there was something more to it after all?

Her head throbbed with questions, uncertainties, floating around, bouncing back to the same conclusion: things were never going to be the same again, and she was kidding herself if she believed her family would be whole again.

Cold, shivering and new tears streaming down her face, she ignored yet another phone call from her mother, and kept walking.

Her fingers were blue, but she realized if she stuffed them in her pockets, they didn't feel quite as cold. She really should go home, she really should, but-

"Kaitlyn?"

Kaitlyn craned her neck, realized the voice was coming from a car that was slowing beside her as she walked along the sidewalk.

Her mother.

Kaitlyn's stomach did a flip as Erica slowed her car down to a steady pace, keeping up with Kaitlyn's strides. Kaitlyn could not meet her mother's eye.

"Kaitlyn," her voice sounded on edge, but there was relief washed in there too. "Kaitlyn, I have been worried sick! Why do you have a cell phone if you aren't going to use it? That's _twice_ now, young lady, and if I recall, you _promised_ you'd tell me if you were going somewhere. Now, get in the car."

It was difficult to figure out what Erica was feeling; she sounded mad, but she'd also sounded as though she'd been crying, and she sounded worried. Kaitlyn's heart was pounding, feeling anger seep through her veins as she kept walking.

"No," she said simply. "I don't want to go home right now."

Erica sighed, keeping her eye on the road as she drove a snail's pace next to Kaitlyn, ignoring the cars who passed her, some honking at her speed. "Why not?"

Kaitlyn felt tears invading her vision again, and she looked down. "I don't know."

Kaitlyn kept walking, but she became aware of the car slowing behind her. Good. Maybe her mother would just let her be, keep walking on her own.

No such luck; Erica was just parking the car.

"Honey, please get in the car," Erica pleaded as she jogged to catch up to her daughter. "We can talk about this, okay?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Baby, you're shivering. Here." Erica took her own jacket off and draped it over Kaitlyn's shoulders. Kaitlyn couldn't help but pull away from her mother's touch. Her anger was fueling her; part of her didn't even know _who_ she was angry at anymore. She just felt so much anger, so much injustice, so much unfairness. Why did this have to happen to _her_ family? Why did the V's have to come and tear the world apart? _Her_ world apart? No, the world wasn't fair.

"Kaiti," Erica said softly, as they both stood in the middle of the sidewalk. "I know you talked to Tyler today."

Kaitlyn stared at the cement beneath her feet, willing her tears down to the deepest crevices of her body. She didn't want to cry, not now, not anymore. If Tyler was right, if her mother had lied to her, to Tyler all these years, she didn't want to let herself be vulnerable. Her mother meant too much to her. One tear, one hug from Erica, and Kaitlyn would fall apart.

No, falling apart wasn't an option. She had to strong if everything around her was crumbling.

So Kaitlyn didn't answer.

But she didn't need to.

"Honey, Tyler already told me he told you about your dad." Erica tried to meet her daughter's eye, to no avail. "So why don't you tell me what's going through your mind?"

What _wasn't_ going through Kaitlyn's mind?

Kaitlyn sighed. Okay, this was it. She needed answers, and yes, she needed to hear the truth from her mother. _If she even tells me the truth..._

"Yeah, Ty told me. He told me everything." _Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry. _"He told me that dad...Joe isn't his father. Why did you lie to us, mom? Why did you let us live our _whole_ lives thinking he was Tyler's father? I mean, is he...is Joe even _my _dad?"

Well, so much for repressing those tears.

Erica stepped forward and grabbed Kaitlyn's arms, refusing to let go when Kaitlyn tried to pull away.

"Kaitlyn, you have to understand! When Tyler had his accident, the hospital tested us both for blood types, to see if we could give Tyler blood. They got the tests mixed up, okay, they _had _to. They told me Joe wasn't Tyler's father, but _I_ know that's not true." Erica sighed, stared hard at her daughter. "Baby, you _and_ Tyler are both Joe's children. He is your dad. There has never been anyone else."

Kaitlyn opted for the silent treatment, still staring a hole into the cement.

Erica breathed out. "You don't believe me."

No comment.

"Kaitlyn. We've always been straight with each other in this family, right? We don't keep things to ourselves, you and me, right? We talk. So tell me why, Kaiti. Why don't you believe me? Why can't you trust me?" Erica waited for a response, and when none came, she spoke again. "Is it because Tyler doesn't believe me?"

"No, mom." Kaitlyn spat, noticing the edginess in her voice. "I'm capable of making my own decisions about things! I don't believe you because I don't think this is the only thing you're lying to me about!"

Erica looked surprised. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about that day we went to the specialist. I'm not stupid, mom! I called my doctor. He was _not_ out of town. And I did research - there is no such thing as a shot that helps with car crash symptoms. Come _on_, mom, did you think you could just _lie_ to me about all this?" Kaitlyn kept going, feeling more upset, angrier. "You're gone way more than you need to be, and I call your office sometimes, and they tell me you left hours ago. You're always looking over your shoulder, you seem paranoid about everything, and I know it has something to do with the V's."

Well, technically she didn't _know_ that, but after going over all the facts in her head, day after day, it was the conclusion she continuously came to. After all, the only odd thing about Kaitlyn's accident was the fact that she was healed by Visitor's. So why did Erica, after receiving a perfectly healthy daughter from the Visitors, insist on seeing a doctor they'd never even heard of?

No, none of it made sense.

"I think that's why you sent Tyler to dad's, too." Kaitlyn added. "If this has something to do with the Visitors, and I _know_ it does, you wanted him at dad's to get him away from Lisa, because she's a V, _and_ the daughter of the _Queen_ of the V's. Mom, I'm top in my class, I'm not some stupid pre-teen airhead that doesn't notice things! I thought you knew me better than that! Something is going on with the Visitors. What are you hiding from me? From _us_? If you want me to trust you, mom, then stop keeping secrets!"

She waited for the outburst. For the typical mother response, "Don't talk to me that way," or "Watch your mouth, young lady", but it never came.

Instead, Erica just got quiet. She didn't deny Kaitlyn's accusations, just tried to dumb them down.

"Kaitlyn, you have nothing to worry about. Can you trust me on that?"

"No," Kaitlyn said emphatically. "I can't."

Silence followed. Kaitlyn couldn't stand it. She glared at her mother defiantly.

"No more secrets, mom."

Erica sighed, seemingly defeated. She bit at her lip, stared at the moon in the sky, wedged between a rock and a hard place. Kaitlyn stood her ground until Erica returned her gaze.

"Alright, Kaiti," she said quietly, seriously. "Get in the car."

"No, mom, I'm not getting in the car unless you-"

"If you get in the car," Erica paused, torn. "I promise I'll tell you what's going on."

This took Kaitlyn by surprise. It was definitely the last thing she expected to hear from her mother. She expected resistance left, right and center, not this. Still, Kaitlyn was skeptical. How could she be sure her mother wasn't just saying this to get her daughter to submit and get in the car?

Still, Kaitlyn thought back; she was pretty sure her mother had never broken a promise to her.

"Will you actually?" Kaitlyn asked, testing the grounds.

Erica hesitated, but eventually nodded.

"Yes, but come to the car first." Erica shivered. "It's freezing out here."


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty Six**

Kaitlyn obliged, but not without a definite moment's hesitation. She couldn't help but suspect her mother had a trick up her sleeve. Was this just a ploy to get her home?

Still, if there was a chance her mother would finally tell her what the heck was going on, then it was worth it.

So Kaitlyn sat in the front seat and waited. It didn't take long; Erica seemed impatient to get this out of the way.

"Kaiti," Erica said, rubbing her eyes tiredly. "First and foremost, you _have_ to understand I can't tell you everything-"

"That wasn't the deal!"

"Kaitlyn!" Erica raised her voice. "Look, my first priority is your's and Tyler's safety. That's more important to me than even your trust right now, okay? Trust me when I say I can't possibly tell you everything there is to know. It could be dangerous."

Kaitlyn's interest spiked; she knew something was up, but..._danger_?

"Wh-what do you mean?" Kaitlyn asked, suddenly feeling a sick feeling in her stomach; did she really want to know what was going on?

"I can't tell you the whole story, baby, but I can tell you the V's are _not_ who they say they are." Erica sighed. "They aren't here to help us. They aren't even in their real forms. They're here for purposes far beyond just wanting to be our friend. They are dangerous, and they are vicious. They are not our friends."

Kaitlyn swallowed - she'd always been leery of the Visitors, but she always just settled on disliking them because of all the changes they were causing. But...dangerous?

"H-how do you know this?" Kaitlyn whispered.

"I can't tell you everything, Kaitlyn, but I have proof, and there are others like me who know. Ryan is our best ally, because he used to be a Visitor. We know more about who they are and what they want because he used to be a part of their race."

"Why isn't he anymore?" Kaitlyn wanted to know.

"Because he started to feel human emotion." Erica sighed. "They aren't human, Kaiti, they don't feel like we do, but they _pretend_ to, and they are preying on us, pretending to love us, pretending to care."

Kaitlyn swallowed. "Y-you mean Lisa...Lisa can't really love Ty?"

"I don't know. Some Visitors have fallen into the trap of human emotion, but I don't trust her, Kaitlyn. She's the daughter of the queen, Anna, and Anna has already done..." Erica breathed in deeply. "Some really bad things."

"Like what?" Kaitlyn asked.

"You're too young, Kaitlyn, just trust me on that."

Kaitlyn exhaled. "How long have you known?"

"A while."

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because I had to be sure. Because I don't want to put you or Tyler in danger in any way. Even knowing the truth could draw attention to yourselves. I kept it to myself for your own good." Erica paused. "Kaitlyn, this is very serious stuff, okay? You have _got_ to keep this a secret. You can't tell Freddie, you can't tell any friends, or your dad, and _especially_ Tyler. If he finds out, he might distance himself from Lisa, and the rest of the Visitors, and if that happens, they may suspect he knows, and he might be in danger."

Kaitlyn wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. This was _not_ what she expected was going on. Not at all.

"I won't tell him." Kaitlyn swallowed hard. "Mom? Are they really that dangerous? Could they really...hurt us?"

Erica hesitated, and that scared Kaitlyn more than anything else.

"I believe they can, Kaitlyn." Erica reached out and took her daughter's hand. "But I promise you, I will not let them hurt you or Tyler. I will keep you safe."

Kaitlyn swallowed, knowing in that moment that even though her mother was not superman, she trusted that her mother would do everything in her power to keep her children safe, whatever the cost.

"You said there were a bunch of you who knew about this." Kaitlyn pointed out, not wanting to let go of her mom's hand. 13 or not, she was terrified. "What are you all doing about the Visitors?"

Because she knew her mother well enough to know she would just sit back and do nothing if something this big was going on.

"There's a resistance called the Fifth Column," Erica explained. "I only know three right now, but there are more out there. We just haven't found them yet. Some of them are Visitors who've turned away, some are human, but they all know the truth about the Visitors, and are determined to stop them. Now, Kaiti, you know the truth too. You have to promise me you'll keep it to yourself. If it gets out to anybody, it could get to the V's. Any attention on us is not going to be good, okay?"

Kaitlyn nodded, sucking in a harsh breath. "Is...is that why you sent Tyler to dad's? Because Lisa's a Visitor?"

Erica nodded. "I know Tyler doesn't believe me, but I need you to, Kaiti. Joe is your dad, and Tyler's too. There was never anybody else. I wouldn't lie to you."

She seemed desperate, pleading almost. Kaitlyn could only nod slowly.

"I believe you, mom."

And she did.

Erica reached out and engulfed her daughter in an awkward hug over the stick shift. Kaitlyn bit her lip to keep herself from crying like a baby. To think there was an alien race in their city, _above_ their city, lying to everybody, set on destruction, well, Kaitlyn was sure she would never sleep again.

"Mom, I wanna help with the resistance," Kaitlyn said strongly when her mother let go. "I wanna join the Fifth Column!"

"No!" Erica said sternly.

"Why not?"

"Because, Kaitlyn, you're still a kid, I don't care _how _smart you are-"

"But mom, that's-"

"Kaitlyn, this is non-negotiable, I don't care _what_ you say!" Erica was raising her voice. "My priority is protecting you and Tyler, and that means keeping you out."

Kaitlyn crossed her arms. She didn't argue, because deep down, she knew her mother was right, but she wasn't about to admit that.

"The best you can do for me, Kaitlyn, for the Fifth Column, is to stay away from the Visitors. I'm having enough trouble trying to keep Ty away. If I know I don't have to worry about you, it will make me rest a little easier," Erica said with a small smile.

Kaitlyn sighed, met her mother's eye, and nodded. "I promise."

What else was there to do?


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty Seven**

A few days had passed since Kaitlyn and her mother had their conversation, and Kaitlyn was feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders. She jumped at every noise she heard, she constantly worried about Tyler and her mother, and anytime she saw the Visitors on television, she couldn't help but wonder about their alterior motives. Twenty minutes ago, Kaitlyn shut off the TV because Anna had convinced world leaders about the benefits of "Blue Energy", an endless energy source the Visitors were willing to share.

A week ago, Kaitlyn wouldn't have cared. Now, she wondered what the truth was behind Blue Energy, and how dangerous it could be, if the Visitors ever decided to use it for harm. Or was that their plan from the beginning? The thought made Kaitlyn shudder.

It was late in the evening when Kaitlyn was sitting at the kitchen table, feeling flustered by the weekend's math homework. Homework used to be so much easier when she and Freddie would work together, but now that he was busy with his new friends, the ones who liked the Visitors, he barely said two words to her. Sure, he was nice enough to her, but they never hung out anymore, his new friends thought she was weird, and all he cared about was the Visitors. His new favourite T-shirt was had a giant 'V' scrawled across it. Kaitlyn missed him, even missed having to help him do his homework on top of doing her own.

Sighing, she moved on to her next math question when she heard the front door open. Instinctively, she stopped and held her breath, tempted to grab a knife from the counter. Fear gripped at her anytime that door opened, even though it always turned out to be her mother.

This time was no exception.

"Hey Kaiti-B," Erica greeted as Kaitlyn visibly exhaled.

"Hi, mom." Kaitlyn tried to control her shaking hands. "Are you home for the night?"

"No, baby, I'm just grabbing a snack, and I have to go out right away," Erica said without meeting her daughter's eye. Kaitlyn picked up on it; it was something her mother had been in the habit of doing the last week. Ever since Erica told her about the Visitors and the Fifth Column, Kaitlyn wanted to know everything the Fifth Column was doing, everything Erica and her group were doing to help the case. But Erica was less than forthcoming, tried to hide as much as she could. It was annoying, really. Kaitlyn knew the truth now, and still Erica insisted on trying to hide it.

Kaitlyn got that sense now; Erica wasn't just going back to work tonight. No, this had something to do with the Visitors.

Should she ask? No, Erica would just say she was going back to work, same as she tried to say every other night. If Kaitlyn really wanted to know what was going on, she would have to figure it out for herself.

"That sucks," Kaitlyn said, clearing her throat as she gathered her homework. "Well, I'm gonna go finish my homework in my room. I'll see you later, mom."

"Okay, baby, have a good night. I'll lock the door on my way out."

"Thanks." Kaitlyn took off to her room, closing the door behind her. Dropping her homework on her bed, she opened her bedroom window and climbed out for the second time that week.

* * *

Kaitlyn had always been a quiet girl. Teachers at school always told her mom and dad at parent-teacher interviews that she was a little too shy, and needed to speak up a little more.

Well, being quiet was working out well for her now; Erica had no idea her only daughter was hiding under a blanket in the back seat of her car.

Kaitlyn knew her mother would kill her, skin her alive! But it wasn't fair; after everything they'd gone through about trust, the _least_ her mother could do was tell her she was going out to do stuff for the Fifth Column. Sure, Erica didn't _lie_; she was technically going out, but she never offered any additional information. _But I know the truth about the Visitors; why wouldn't she just tell me?_

Even Kaitlyn knew the answer to that; truth or not, Erica was still trying to protect her daughter by keeping her out of the loop.

Well, fine. Kaitlyn would just have to figure out what was happening on her own.

It wasn't long before the car came to a stop. Kaitlyn made a conscious effort to breathe quietly as she heard her mother turn off the car and grab her stuff. Kaitlyn was even sure she heard a gun cock.

Kaitlyn suddenly wondered if she should just go home.

When Erica slammed the door shut, leaving the car in the dark, Kaitlyn waited five seconds before she popped up and stared out the window. They were at the amusement park, closed for the school year because of the colder weather. There was Erica, walking through the entrance.

Swallowing hard, Kaitlyn got out of the car, closing the door silently behind her. Glancing around her carefully, she ran toward the entrance to the amusement park, feeling her heart jackhammering inside of her. Suddenly, she felt very alone and very vulnerable. Did Erica come here to catch a Visitor? Were there Visitors around? Would they find Kaitlyn? Would they kill her?

She could hear her heartbeat in her ears as anxiety began to plague her fiercely. She shouldn't have come. She should have stayed in the car. She should have just walked home.

In the amusement park, she stole a quick peek around and saw no sign of her mother, or anybody else for that matter. Now, she felt alone. Now, she felt exposed. Now, she felt like nothing more than a little girl who wanted her mommy.

Fear suffocating her all of a sudden, she turned to flee from the park when she ran into a brick wall of a man, who grabbed her arms tightly and got right in her face.

"And who do you think _you_ are, lovely?" The man had a thick British accent, gruff and angry sounding. Kaitlyn shook like a leaf in his grasp. "You some kind of a spy? Did someone from your lovely little mothership send you in disguise? You think we're going to be fooled by a little kid? Who told you we'd be here? Who let the cat out of the bag, hmm?"

With each question, the man shook Kaitlyn hard, and she couldn't find her voice. She was moving her mouth, but no words were coming out. She felt tears in her eyes, and she wished so desperately she could tell the man who she was. She wasn't a spy, she definitely wasn't a Visitor, but he was so close to her face that paralyzed her from being realistic.

"Alright, you don't want to talk to me? We'll see what the others have to say about you!" The man grabbed her around the middle and began dragging her through the amusement park. Kaitlyn tried to struggle, pleading wordlessly with her attacker until she heard a voice in the distance.

"Hobbes, what are you...Kaitlyn?"

Her mother.

Kaitlyn craned her neck far enough to see Erica running toward them. Kaitlyn wanted to run toward her mother, but this man, Hobbes, wasn't letting go.

"Hobbes, let her go!" Erica yelled, swatting Hobbes' hands away from Kaitlyn. "That's my daughter."

Kaitlyn's heart started to ease up as Erica glared down Hobbes.

"Oh, sorry Evans." Hobbes shrugged. "Thought she was a spy."

Before Kaitlyn could say a single word, Erica turned her attention to Kaitlyn.

Not good.

Erica roughly grabbed hold of Kaitlyn's arms and screamed in her face.

"Kaitlyn Beverly Evans, what the _hell_ are you doing here?" Not only did Erica sound angry, she sounded _frightened._ "Do you have _any _idea how _dangerous_ this is?"

Kaitlyn hadn't, not until Hobbes had grabbed her like that. Now, with Erica's fear a very real presence, Kaitlyn wanted to curl up in a ball and cry.

"I-I'm sorry, I-I didn't know. I j-just wanted to help, with the R-Resistance." Kaitlyn swallowed hard. She did _not_ want to cry in front of these people.

Erica was shaking with...anger? Fear? Kaitlyn wasn't sure, but her mother would _not_ let go of her arms, and her gaze was so hard; Kaitlyn was afraid to look away.

The man named Hobbes snorted a little. "Like mother, like daughter."

"Not the time, Hobbes!" Erica snapped, finally letting go of Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn breathed out, looking at the others. That was when she realized she recognized one of them.

"F-Father Jack?" she asked, hardly believing her own eyes. Jack smiled, only just.

"Hi Kaitlyn," he greeted quietly.

"Okay, we need to get something straight, here." It was the guy Kaitlyn recognized from Dr. Pearlman's office, staring at her with cold eyes. Ryan. Erica had told her he was a Visitor once upon a time. The thought gave Kaitlyn a chill. "Erica, did you tell a _kid_ about the Fifth Column?"

He did _not_ sound impressed. Kaitlyn couldn't help but shrink back.

Erica, however, just stared at Ryan without an answer. He already knew it.

Erica bent down to be face to face with Kaitlyn.

"Kaitlyn, I cannot even _begin_ to tell you how dangerous this situation is right now. I can't take you home right now, because things are going to start going down any minute now, and there is no way in _hell_ I'm letting you walk home, not now. You're just going to have wait until this is all over." Kaitlyn could tell it was making Erica _sick_ even saying it. "But you listen, and you listen _good_! You sit here, behind this building, and you do _not_ move a muscle, do you hear me? No matter what you hear, no matter what you see, you do not move. I tell you to duck, you duck. I tell you to run, you run."

She said each word slowly and carefully, as though speaking to a small child. Any other time, Kaitlyn would have been offended, but tonight, she only nodded.

Erica nodded. "Good." She paused. "By the way, you're in big trouble."

Kaitlyn ignored the snicker coming from Hobbes.

Ryan started laying out the plan. "Okay, the Visitor is supposed to be coming for Alex tonight, due to a tip that was leaked by us." Kaitlyn turned and saw a young guy who looked terrified for his life. "Alex, you're just bait, the Visitors aren't going to hurt you. We're going to be here the whole time. Okay, everyone, the plan is to take the Visitor alive. We need him for questioning. Hobbes will take the west tower, Jack, you'll stay at this angle, Erica, take the east side, and I'll be behind the ticket booth. Everybody got it?"

They nodded and started to take off.

Kaitlyn swallowed hard when her mother gave her a stern look that said, "get down."

Kaitlyn got down, hugging herself close.

Jack was nearby, crouched by the corner of the building Kaitlyn was behind, holding a gun and keeping an eye out. He shot a quick glance at Kaitlyn and offered her a smile and nod.

Like that was reassuring.

It seemed like hours, sitting there, and Kaitlyn couldn't even hear anything. Curious, she crawled her way over to where Jack was crouched. She peeked her head over his shoulder.

"Why isn't anything happening?" she whispered. Jack whipped around, stared at her and quickly turned back to watch Alex, who was standing alone in the middle of the pavement.

"Kaitlyn, keep down," Jack hissed. "We're expecting a Visitor any time now, and you've got to-"

A shot fired out.

Kaitlyn jumped back as Jack flew forward with his gun. Kaitlyn didn't see Ryan, or Hobbes, or even her mother all start running toward the sound of gunfire, because all Kaitlyn could see was Alex, down, bleeding out from his stomach. Kaitlyn couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't see anything apart from Alex. Someone had shot him. Someone around here had a gun.

A Visitor?

Kaitlyn fell to her knees again as Father Jack, realizing the coast was clear, knelt down next to the dying Alex and spoke to him. Kaitlyn felt tears piercing her eyes as she watched Father Jack take the boy's hand and speak to him, but judging by how Father Jack lowered his head only seconds later, Kaitlyn knew that Alex had died.

_What if...what if it had been me? What if it had been my mom?_

Seconds later, Ryan and Hobbes showed up with a man in between them, hands handcuffed behind his back. He struggled like crazy. Kaitlyn stood up and backed away. They caught the shooter.

Erica was right behind them, holding a shotgun. She shot a glance over her shoulder and say Jack and Alex. "Damn it."

"We'll take him to headquarters and start questioning him," Ryan said, yanking on the man who glared evenly at the group of them.

Kaitlyn felt sick to her stomach.

"I'll be there soon. First, I'm taking Kaitlyn home." Erica came forward and gently took her daughter's arm. Kaitlyn didn't move; she couldn't take her eyes off of Alex, the poor guy who died in front of her.

"She gonna be okay?" Ryan asked, motioning to Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn felt numb from the top of her head to the tip of her toes. No, she was _never_ going to be okay.

"I'll talk to you guys later," Erica said, drawing Kaitlyn away from the murderous scene, holding on to her tightly as she took her to the car. Kaitlyn felt as though her feet weren't even on the ground anymore.

* * *

She barely remembered anything from the car ride, though she was sure her mother had tried to get her to talk. All Kaitlyn had running through her mind was the shot that took Alex's life. Alex, a guy just wanting to help the cause, just like her. And he died because of it.

Somehow, Kaitlyn ended up in her room and shook out of her stupor long enough to realize Erica was still trying to talk to her.

"Kaiti, I can't help you if you don't talk to me," Erica said soothingly. Kaitlyn swallowed and looked down at the ground, visualizing a pool of blood around her feet. She quickly pulled her feet up on her bed, tucking them under her.

"Mom," she peeped. "Did...did Alex get killed because he was Fifth Column?"

Erica hesitated before she gave a curt nod.

That was when Kaitlyn began to cry. "Mom, you've got to quit the Fifth Column!"

"Honey, why would you say that?" Erica asked, leaning in closer to gather her daughter in her arms.

"Because, it's dangerous!" Kaitlyn wailed. "That...that could have been _you_ tonight!"

"It also could have been you!" Erica yelled. "Kaiti, I'm very upset that you followed me tonight. You've got to promise me that you will _never_ try something like this again! This is not a game, Kaitlyn, this is a very dangerous situation, do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand, mom, but you're the one putting yourself in the dangerous situation!"

"I will do whatever it takes to keep my children safe!"

"You think getting yourself killed is going help me and Ty?" Kaitlyn could not stop the tears, no matter how much she wanted to. "It's bad enough my father's not around, but what am I supposed to do without a mother?"

Even Erica had no response to that. All she could do was hold her daughter close as she cried. Finally, Erica sighed.

"Look, Kaiti, I don't expect you to understand everything that's going on right now," she said gently. "But you have to know that you and Tyler are number one in my life, and right now, my children are threatened by invaders. I have to do everything I can to keep you safe."

Kaitlyn was quiet for a moment before pulling out of her mother's embrace and meeting her eyes.

"But...who's going to keep you safe?"

Erica couldn't help but smile. "Oh baby, that's why there's a team of us. We've all got each other's backs. Everything's going to be fine."

"How can you even say that?" Kaitlyn shouted. "A guy _died _tonight!"

Erica was silent again, just watching her daughter, considering her, wondering what to say that would make her feel better. Who was she kidding? The girl was 13 and she watched a man die. What _could_ she say to make her feel better?

"I'm sorry you had to see that, honey," Erica said quietly. "I wish I could take that away from you."

Kaitlyn didn't respond, didn't speak a word, but leaned in to her mother's embrace and let herself be held while she cried.

"Mom?" Kaitlyn asked, a few moments later.

"Yeah, sweets?"

"Please don't go anywhere."

"Honey, I have to go back-"

"Please, mom, please stay with me." Kaitlyn sniffed. "I'm scared."

Erica pulled her daughter tighter toward herself with a sigh.

"Okay baby, don't worry," Erica said. "I'm not going anywhere."


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty Eight**

When Kaitlyn got up the next morning for school, it felt like there was a rock sitting in her gut, her head was fuzzy and her body ached. Memories from the night before, of death, of fear, of blood still swarmed over her like a herd of angry bees. She hadn't slept a wink, not even for a little bit. Any time she felt as though she was nodding off, she'd see Alex, his lifeless eyes staring at her, and she'd jerk awake.

School was going to be interesting.

Still in pajamas, Kaitlyn wondered down to her mother's room, wondering if Erica was still asleep. She hadn't left the house yet, Kaitlyn would have heard that. Sure enough, as Kaitlyn neared her mother's bedroom, she heard her quiet voice on the other side of the door.

She was on the phone.

Kaitlyn let herself in without knocking and noticed her mother sitting on the edge of her bed, back facing Kaitlyn. The way Erica kept talking, well, she probably hadn't even heard Kaitlyn come in.

"Ryan, are you sure this is a good idea?...Do you have any other options?...Well, what are you telling Val?...Ryan, you can't keep this a secret from her anymore, you've got to tell her the truth. It's the only way to keep her safe...I know. What is safe anymore?"

Kaitlyn lowered herself to sit on the edge of her mom's bed and Erica whipped around to see her daughter staring at her, curious as ever. Erica sighed heavily and spoke quietly into the phone. "I have to go, Ryan, Kaiti's up...Yeah, I think so...You take care of yourself, and Valerie, okay?...Keep us updated."

Erica hung up the phone and looked exhausted. She looked at Kaitlyn, and forced a smile.

"Hey Mouse," Erica said, really taking in her daughter. "Baby, you didn't sleep, did you?"

Kaitlyn simply shook her head. "Is Ryan okay?"

Erica hesitated. "He should be fine."

So cryptic. Kaitlyn felt herself growing frustrated as Erica stood up and began to get dressed for work.

"Mom," Kaitlyn said seriously. "I know he's not fine, I heard the conversation. So what happened?"

"Nothing, Kaitlyn." Erica sighed. "Why didn't you sleep?"

Kaitlyn lifted an eyebrow, waiting until her mother turned and acknowledged her daughter.

"Come on, mom." Kaitlyn crossed her arms. "Tell me what's going on."

Erica finally shook her head and found a seat at the edge of her bed.

"No, honey, I'm not telling you anything else. No more, not after last night! I shouldn't have told you anything in the first place. You're just a little girl, far too young to be privy to _any_ of this."

"Mom, last night I saw a man _die_!" Kaitlyn shrieked, startling her mother. Kaitlyn took a deep breath before continuing. "I saw a man die, all because of this fight to expose the V's for who they are. I think I'm beyond being a little girl anymore, mom."

Erica was silent, considering her daughter without a single word. Kaitlyn decided to go one further.

"What can you possibly tell me that isn't more _freaky_ than what happened last night?"

Erica sighed, rolling her eyes. Kaitlyn could see that she was torn, and Kaitlyn couldn't help but appreciate how much her mother was looking out for her little girl, but still, Kaitlyn's curiousity won out. She didn't want to be protected; she wanted to know the truth. Maybe if she knew the truth, she'd be able to help, somehow. Maybe she'd be able to protect Tyler, somehow.

So many 'somehow's.'

"Kaitlyn, why can't you just leave it alone?" Erica asked quietly.

"The same reason you can't leave it alone," Kaitlyn replied just as quietly. "My family is involved in this whole thing."

Erica bit her lip and engulfed her daughter in a hug. "Oh Kaitlyn, you're too brave for your own good."

"So, are you going to tell me what's up with Ryan?" Kaitlyn asked, not wanting her mother to change the subject. She had a habit of doing that.

"Ryan's...in trouble. And so is Valerie, his girlfriend, who's pregnant," Erica replied. Kaitlyn wanted to roll her eyes. Why did her mother insist on offering so little information?

"Why?"

Erica hesitated, but after a glare from her daughter, she continued.

"The Visitors are after them."

"Why?"

"Well, because Ryan's a Visitor, and...he's the father of Valerie's baby," Erica replied.

Kaitlyn didn't have to ask, she was smart enough to make the connection. The baby would be half visitor, half human.

"Oh," she said.

"And for some reason, Anna wants that baby. It probably has something to do with it being a hybrid, but we can't let that happen. Anna's ultimate plan is to take over, and if that baby has some kind of role in that, we can't let her get to it. So, Ryan has to run, and he has to take Valerie with him. He's got to do everything he can to hide her, or else the Visitors will take the baby."

Kaitlyn was silent, considering everything her mother was saying. No, it was nothing as scary as what she'd seen the night before, but the weight of the whole situation was heavy, and Kaitlyn felt all the implications of this war heavy on her shoulders. She felt sick.

Erica seemed to notice.

"What's up, babe?" she asked quietly. Kaitlyn just shrugged non-chalently, but her mother knew better. She twined her arm around her daughter's shoulders and waited. Kaitlyn was like that - eventually, she'd come out with whatever she was thinking.

"What's going to happen, mom?" Kaitlyn wanted to know.

Erica puckered her brow. "What do you mean?"

"Do you really think you can defeat the Visitors? I mean, there's so many of them, and they're from another planet, and they're smart. There's only...a few of you. What if you can't stop them?" Kaitlyn swallowed. "What about Tyler? He thinks they're awesome, and if he gets sucked in too far...what if they hurt him? What if they _kill_ him?"

Erica pulled away from her daughter and turned her to face her, eye to eye.

"Listen to me. I know it seems huge, and I know it seems impossible, but Kaiti, I _promise_ you that I am going to do _everything_ in my power to get the Visitors out of here. I am going to do whatever it takes to keep you and Tyler safe. _Nothing_ in this world is more important to me than the two of you, and if the Visitors are threatening that, then this means war!"

Kaitlyn appreciated her mother's sincerity, but even this seemed too big a war to fight. Once upon a time, Kaitlyn believed her mother, strong and able as she was, could do _anything_. She was better than any hero in the storybooks, stronger, more dedicated.

But Kaitlyn was 13 now, and last night, she saw a man die. Her mother was fighting the same war Alex was fighting, and he was dead.

Safe. What her mother said to Ryan was right:

What is safe anymore?


End file.
